Charlene and The Chocolate Factory
by Kayla Sparrow
Summary: What if one of the main points of the original story plot changed? What if, instead of the little boy CharLIE, there was...the sweet young woman CharLENE? How would Mr.Wonka react?
1. Chapter 1: Charlene

A/N: Of course I do not own any of the CATCF characters, or Burton's movie… although this story has a lot in common with the movie, the main thing – which is "Charlie" being CharLENE instead of Charlie – changes pretty much the outcome of the plot… I hope you enjoy it, I'll start posting this first part and see how many reviews I get..i you like it, I'll add more on, if not…well, I won't ;) Enjoy, folks! R&R!  
xoxo  
KAYLA 

**Charlene And The Chocolate Factory**

**Introduction **

"…_five lucky kids will follow in his footsteps, but only one will find his heart.."_

This is a story of an ordinary young girl called Charlene Bucket. She was not prettier, or smarter, or more intelligent than other girls. Her family wasn't rich, or powerful, or well connected: in fact, they barely had enough to eat. Charlene Bucket was the luckiest girl in the entire world, she just didn't know it yet.

**Chapter 1-Charlene**

The freezing hale slashed at Charlene's bare face as she tramped through the snowy streets, pulling her scarf more tightly around her and squeezing her small jacket as close as possible to her cold body, trying to ignore the cold. She was returning home after a hard day's work at Lollipops&Sugar, the sweets shop where she was employed.

It was truly terrible for her to pass eight hours a day surrounded by sweets of all sorts, without being able to afford them. Charlene could very well get past the cakes, the cookies, even the candy, but she absolutely couldn't ignore her all-time favourite sweet in the whole wide world: chocolate.

Every day, several big boxes, filled mostly with chocolate bars, were delivered to the store from none other than Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, producer of the most delicious chocolate bars in the world. And who else, if not poor Charlene, was responsible of unwrapping all of the boxes and carrying the load of chocolates all the way from the warehouse to the store? Every single day, Charlene spent a good part of her working hours doing just that, so that by now she knew all of Wonka's products, from the chocolate bars to all the other sweets: every single one.

Charlene loved Wonka's sweets, even though the occasions in which she could afford buying them were unfortunately rare: her family needed the money she owned to prevent from starving completely, since they already had problems with buying essential foods. But sometimes, Charlene would be lucky enough to earn a extra few dollars, and she would then be able to buy a couple of Everlasting Gums, or perhaps a Loony Lollipop, or, most importantly, the thing she craved most: a single Wonka Scrumptious Fudgemallow Delight chocolate bar.

There were also other occasions in which Charlene was lucky enough to earn a few fair pieces of chocolate. For instance, at times the store's cook would ask for her assistance, perhaps when he had to bake a particularly large or complicated cake. When this happened, Charlene would stand by the cooking counter, rushing around now and then to fetch a spoon, or a bowl, or whatever the cook needed. Sometimes he would bake his famous chocolate fudge cake, and he would tell Charlene to take a couple of Wonka bars and provide to chop them all up and place them in a pot, to make them melt slowly above a dim fire. Charlene would carefully cut the bars into equal squares, and then she would put them in a large pot and light the fire, keeping a close eye on the chocolate as she watched the squares melt together. She loved to spend the next minutes watching this happen, occasionally stirring the dense creamy liquid and then smelling the wonderful perfume of the chocolate.

It would rarely happen that a few squares of chocolate would be left over, perhaps when the cook used them in the end to decorate the cake, and in these rare occasions the fat cook, who was always very fatherly with Charlene, would gladly give her the remaining piece. And oh, what a joy she felt as she slowly nibbled one of them, pausing in between bites to feel that fantastic sensation only chocolate can give you spread in her body!

But she would never finish all of the chocolate, she would save a good portion of it to bring it home to her mother, her father, and her grandparents, who lived all together under the same roof in a small, old house at the far edge of the city, practically opposite from where Lollipops&Sugar was.

The family had owned the small cottage ever since Charlene could remember. Her father worked in a toothpaste factory, where he sat all day long putting the caps on the tubes. However, the hours were long and the pay was miserable, and as Charlene started growing the pay wasn't nearly enough for all of them, so she had left the local public high school when she was only sixteen years old, and had immediately provided finding a job right in the shop where she used to spend many hours when she was little, staring at the towers of sweets and chocolates exposed in the shop's windows, and secretly hoping to own a place like that when she grew up.

Charlene stopped in her tracks and raised her head slowly: she was standing in the front of great iron gates that were locked. Beyond those gates, there was a courtyard filled with many delivery trucks, and beyond that… huge, towering, massive, it stood in front of Charlene's eyes, like every day: Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, the biggest one in the entire world. Every day Charlene would pass in front of that factory, and the smell of chocolate filled the air for a very long distance from it. As always, Charlene began daydreaming, and it was as it the cold and the snow had faded away…

That factory had been in that city for nearly fifteen years now, and it was still in perfect conditions. Grandpa Joe, one of Charlene's grandparents, had often told her many stories about that factory, so that she felt as though she knew everything about it. He had told her that he was once one of Wonka's loyal workers. Apparently, this was the story: Mr Wonka had started with only one shop some twenty years ago, but soon the extraordinary success of his sweets had brought him to build and open the Chocolate Factory. Grandpa Joe had told Charlene so many stories on that wonderful place. Things were going perfectly for Mr Wonka, that is, until other candy makers had begun to grow jealous of his success and had therefore provided with sending spies to his factory to steal his most secret recipes. Soon after the other candy makers had started copying his inventions, Mr Wonka took a very serious decision: one day he asked all the workers to leave and to go home, for he was going to close his factory for ever.

"I am closing my factory for ever," he had told them, "I'm sorry. Go home."

And so it happened: the workers left, the factory stopped working, and nobody ever saw Mr Wonka again. Yet one day, the most amazing thing happened: suddenly, the factory's chimneys started smoking again, and the machineries started whirring again, and very soon the trucks began to distribute loads of sweets once more all over the world. But the strange thing was, nobody ever got his job back. And, even if the factory was working and had continued doing so throughout the years, nobody ever saw Mr Wonka, or anyone else, for that matter, ever enter or leave the factory.

Charlene knew that the place kept a secret, a secret nobody was supposed to know, and yet, how she craved to be able to pass through those gates and enter that factory! Oh, the wonders she would certainly find! And Mr Wonka…well, meeting him would be the most fantastic thing that could ever happen to her! But sadly, she thought with a sigh, the chances of her ever doing so were nearly zero. And yet, she through as she trudged on towards her house, there was always hope, wasn't there?


	2. Chapter 1, Part 2

**A/N: Hey guys, I'm glad you enjoy the story so far…this is the second part of Ch.1, as promised, since I see you like it ) **

**I just wanted to specify one thing…as you may have read by yourselves, Melanie, a reader, posted a review saying that, basically, it looks like Charlene is, like Charlie, a little girl, and thus there can't be any actual "romance" involved in the story…all right, I'm saying this just because I don't want it to look like I'm writing something wrong or perverted : my story takes inspiration from the main CATCF plot, but as I said, I've changed the main point and put a girl as a main character instead of a boy. However, that does not mean that Charlene is as old as Charlie would be. On the contrary, I've always thought I'd make her about 20/22 years old, so theoretically there wouldn't be any problems with romance, right? I am sorry if I gave you the wrong idea, but I'm glad someone pointed it out so I had the chance to specify this "age" matter…it's true, I don't think I ever explictly said her age in the story (at least so far) so I guess it's normal that this misunderstanding came up.**

**Anyways, all cleared now, right? ) Charlene is a beautiful 20-year-old girl, and her adventures are just beginning!**

**Thank you for reading, keep on reviewing and please, feel free to point out any other questions you might have. :)**

**XOXO**

**Kayla**

After a while , Charlene finally began to see the outline of her house and she gladly quickened her pace. Within a couple more minutes she had reached the front door and pushed it open, the wood creaking as it swung open.

"Hello, Mother." Said Charlene as she walked through the small house and reached the kitchen corner, which wasn't much more than a cooking stove and a counter, to kiss her mother, "Where's Dad?"

"Hi, darling," answered Mrs Bucket, "Oh, he's not home yet, but I expect him to arrive soon." Charlene dropped her bag on one of the chairs set around the wooden table and took her scarf off, looking around the house in the meantime.

Their house had only three rooms: the first and largest one was the one she was now in, and it included the entrance, the kitchen corner, the table, and then, in an otherwise empty space on the other end of the room, was a large bed, in which Charlene's grandparents laid all day long. There was a second, smaller room, which was occupied by Mr and Mrs Bucket, and, last but certainly not least, Charlene's room was directly above the main room, though it was nothing more than an old mattress, with wrappers of Wonka bars she had owned during the past few years hanging from the wooden wall.

The cottage, being entirely made out of wood that certainly wasn't of the best quality (and many boards being quite loose) , was always quite airy. Now, that wasn't too bad during the summer, but during the winter, like now, the freezing wind was absolutely awful, and it seemed to Charlene that there wasn't any way to block the cold away from her.

So right then, she left her jacket on, just to try and keep the warmth of Lollipops&Sugar inside of her for as long as possible. She smiled as she walked over to her grandparents, who immediately started greeting her. They really loved Charlene, and her return home from work was always a joy for them.

"Hello, Grandpa Joe and Grandma Josephine," Charlene said, as she kissed the old people on the cheek, "Hello, Grandpa George and Grandma Georgina."

"Hello, Charlene," Grandma Josephine greeted her.

"Welcome home, darling," said Grandpa Joe.

Charlene sat in the middle of the bed and looked at the four grandparents, feeling a pang of sadness and pity at the thought that they were always stuck in that bed.

"Tell us, Charlene," asked Grandpa Joe, "How was your day?"

"Well," she answered, "It was normal. But it's getting colder and colder, and it's terrible to walk around in this wind! In any case," she added, "Did I tell you that today the cook made _me _bake a cake?"

"You don't say!" exclaimed Grandma Josephine.

"What cake was it?" asked Grandpa George.

"Was it good?" questioned Grandma Josephine.

Charlene smiled and got up, "Wait and see. I have a surprise for you!"

Indeed, that day had been quite special for her: apart from allowing her to bake most of his famous chocolate cake, the cook had then rewarded her ability by giving her an entire quarter of the finished cake, and it had been a hard quest, walking through the cold city with such a big piece of steaming delicious cake in her bag and preventing herself from eating it.

Charlene continued smiling as she walked to the table, opened her bag, and slowly took out the cake wrapped in foil. Mrs Bucket nearly dropped the spoon she was cooking with when she saw the clump of chocolate cake appear from the wrapping, and the grandparents let out surprised gasps. Charlene quickly took a knife and divided the lot into six equal pieces, one for each member of her family, without counting herself, since she had already tasted the wonderful sweet back in the shop, right after it had been taken out of the oven.

"Here," she said, starting to pass the pieces around, "Taste it. It's delicious."

"Thank you, honey," her mother said, "Come on, give me dad's piece, I'll save it for him for later."

Charlene handed her the two pieces, then picked up the foil and walked back to the old grandparents' bed, handing out the rest of the pieces. There was silence for a couple of moments as everyone taste their piece of cake, the taste of the chocolate spreading wonderfully in their mouths.

Soon after that, Mr Bucket arrived, tired from the hard day's work as usual, and the family ate their cabbage soup, which sadly reminded them how much they were poor. Then Charlene stayed up a little more and listened to one of Grandpa Joe's stories on Willy Wonka, this time it was about an Indian prince that had ordered Mr Wonka to build him a palace entirely made out of chocolate, and hadn't followed Mr Wonka's advice to start eating it straight away, with the result that it had melted under his very eyes. After Grandpa Joe had finished his story, Charlene got up.

"Oh, Grandpa, what a wonderfully clever man Mr Wonka is! If only I could meet him one day, just for once…"

"Well," Grandpa Joe answered, "Charlene, if Mr Wonka ever tasted a cake like the one you baked today, why, he would not only meet you, but employ you right away!"

Charlene laughed, "Oh Grandpa, you know it's impossible! Well," she added on a slightly sadder note, "I guess I'll go to bed then…"

She bid everyone goodnight, and as she hugged Grandma Josephine, she whispered in her ear:

"Remember this, my dear child: _nothing _is impossible."

After that Charlene went to her bed and lay down, turning herself towards the wall, where a few boards had fallen off, giving Charlene the usual wondrous sight of the now lit up Chocolate Factory, and she saw something…behind one of the immense illuminated windows…could that possibly be a shadow? A…human shadow? Perhaps…perhaps _he _was standing there, and he, too felt so alone, as Charlene did?

And with that image, Charlene drifted off to sleep, with Grandma Josephine's words still echoing inside her head.


	3. Chapter 2 : The Golden Tickets

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews guys, I really appreciate them! To SlytherinTwin, thank you for your suggestions, I'll keep them in mind. Making things so sappy and obvious is actually part of my plan, you'll understand why later on!;)  
Now, moving on, here is the next chapter! I promise the'll soon become much longer, this whole "introducion" part is meant to be divided in shorter parts…Reviews, people!  
XOXO  
Kayla**

**Chapter 2-The Golden Tickets**

The next day, Charlene woke up at seven thirty, as usual, and got dressed, covering herself up as best as she could to face the icy day waiting for her outside. She then descended downstairs into the main room, where her mother was busy slicing a few very thin pieces from a loaf of bread for breakfast, her father was reading last night's newspaper, and the four grandparents were silently dozing off to sleep.

"Good morning, Mother," said Charlene, as she kissed her and took one of the slices of bread. "Good morning, Dad," she added, kissing him as well.

"Good morning, Charlene," he answered, and as she sat down besides him to eat her breakfast, he added, "Up this early again?"

"Daddy, you know I have to get on work on time!"

He sigh, "Yes, I know. I'm just worried that my little girl never gets to rest…"

"Don't worry, Dad, I'm fine."

She finished eating the bread and quickly got her bag, before bidding everyone goodbye and heading out on the street, where the temperature was colder than ever, so that Charlene began walking very quickly to try and warm herself up. She wasn't paying attention to what was going on around her : that is, until she saw a group of people crowded around a lamp post. Curious to see what the fuss was all about, she joined the group and began standing on her tiptoes to try and see something, but she couldn't manage to see nothing more than a bunch of heads.

She turned around to leave when she noticed something strange: almost every single lamp post had a kind of notice attached to it, and apparently the notices were all the same. Rushing over to the nearest one, Charlene eagerly began to read what the sign said:

Dear people of the world,

I, Willy Wonka, have decided to allow five children to visit my factory this year. In addition, one of these children shall receive a special prize beyond anything you could ever imagine. Five Golden tickets have been hidden underneath the ordinary wrapping paper of five ordinary Wonka bars. The five candy bars may be anywhere, in any shop, in any street, in any town, in any country in the world. So watch out for the Golden Tickets! The five lucky finders of these Golden Tickets will be the ones who will be allowed to visit my factory. Good luck to you all, and happy hunting!

Willy Wonka

Charlene gaped at the sign: she couldn't believe it! It was as if somebody had listened to the wish she had made just the night before…and had decided to give her the chance to make it come true!

"Oh, stop wandering like this, Charlene," a somewhat mean voice said in her head, "The chances of you finding one of those tickets are less than zero!"

And yet…after all, even though she wasn't rich enough to afford buying chocolate every day, she still had a chance, and even if it was one in a million, the chance was still there, however small it could be.

Forcing herself out of her daydreams, she remembered that if she didn't hurry she would be late for work, so she started walking again, trying to focus on what she was doing but continuing her daydreams instead.

When she arrived at work, her boss immediately got angry with her, because the shop had never been so packet with people: apparently everybody had read Mr Wonka's announcement and had suddenly gone on a chocolate buying spree. Charlene excused herself for her slight lateness and hurriedly went in the back to change in her uniform.

At the end of the day, Charlene thought she'd never passed such an exhausting day at work: she hadn't been able to rest for one single moment, what with all those people asking more and more bars of chocolate and more and more loads of them arriving every hour or so, she'd barely had time to catch her breath! In fact, they hadn't sold much more than chocolate that day, with the result that all the other sweets were still in their place, but there was no sign of chocolate anywhere, for the deliveries had ended at seven o'clock.

Usually, Charlene's working hours were from nine o'clock in the morning to four o'clock in the afternoon, but she hadn't dared ask her boss if she could leave the shop right when all the children had just been dismissed from the schools and had hurried in the shop to buy more bars of chocolate, and so she'd been busy until now, when the last mother had brought the last five chocolate bars before guiding her fat son outside, wearing a satisfied expression as though she had already one of the Tickets in her hands.

Charlene wearily changed from her working outfit to her normal clothes, and as she headed for the exit she said goodbye to the cook and then to her boss, who asked her to arrive slightly before the shop opened the next day, since the frantic hunt certainly wouldn't be over already.

Sighing, Charlene was back on the street, and headed towards home, looking forward for the first time to her ration of cabbage soup. It took her longer than usual to walk home, and as she stopped like she always did in front of the Factory, she sigh deeply and thought about those lucky children who were going to be able to visit the factory and meet marvellous Mr Wonka.

When she got home, it was already dark, and the family was already seated at the table (at least, her parents were, while the old grandparents were all lying in bed with their bowls of soup sitting on their laps), and Mrs Bucket let out a small cry when she saw Charlene enter through the door.

"Charlene!" she exclaimed, "Where have you been? Oh, we have been so worried!"

"I'm all right, mother," answered Charlene, setting her things down and going over to sit at the grandparents' bed with her bowl of soup in her hands, "I'm so sorry I'm this late, but you have no idea how frantic work was today! A thousand people at least, all asking for hundreds and hundreds of Wonka chocolate bars! And all because of those Golden Tickets!"

"Yes, I've heard the news," said Mr Bucket, "And I don't think it'll be long until someone starts finding the first one."

"I wonder why Mr Wonka has decided to let these five children to visit his factory!" Charlene thought out loud, "I mean, why now? Is there a particular reason, or is it just a normal, everyday decision? It'll be the first time anyone enters that factory over the last twenty years!"

"Mr Wonka is very peculiar, Charlene," answered Grandma Josephine, "But he'll probably have a good reason to do what he's doing."

"Imagine how it would be," said Grandpa Joe to Charlene, "to open a bar of chocolate and find a Golden Ticket inside! I'd give anything in the world just to go inside that _amazing_ factory!"

"Oh, it would be wonderful!" commented Charlene. "But I have no chance, really. The only bars of chocolate I ever get are the ones I can afford with my extra money, and it happens really rarely that I earn some. I usually get spare chocolate squares from the cook, remember?"

"Well that's not true," said Mrs Bucket, "You have the same chances as everybody else of finding one of those Golden Tickets!"

"Nonsense!" commented Grandpa Joe, "The finders are going to be children who can afford buying loads of those bars every single day, and as our Charlene here said, she can afford to buy one very rarely. She doesn't have a chance. Mark my words," he added, "The finder of the first Ticket is going to be as fat as a pig!"


	4. Chapter 3: The Finders

**A/N: Hello!!! Back with a new update:) I'm really appreciating all your reviews, so thank you for all your suggestions! Let me comment on a few of them…hmmm…**

To Slytherintwin : I'm happy you like the chapter! And about the fact of Charlene not being a child and the whole "how will she find the GT" thing…no, I'm actually not planning on using another character (the orphan idea you said) or making WW allow her to enter the factory…if you stay tuned for the next update, you'll find the answer to your question! ;)

To Inferno: let me answer your questions…  
1. Charlene does have a high school education, but as you might've read she was forced to leave high school when she was 16 to go to work, so I actually hadn't thought of giving that backround much importance…maybe I will later on, thanks for pointing it out!  
2.Thank you for this comment, I'm glad you saw this aspect of her personality. Yes, I've actually made Charlene like this on purpose, she's a bit of an "Alice-in-wonderland" type of girl. I didn't think a girl who wasn't especially sensible and didn't have a big imagination could fit in in a story like this, don't you think?

Lydia Sparrow, I love WW too! Just have a little more patience, I promise he'll be coming 'round soon!!

Thank you once again, guys! Here's the chapter (hopefully the last "short" one! LOL ;P )

XOXO  
Kayla 

**Chapter 3-The Finders**

Next morning, Charlene had a bit more trouble waking up, because the previous day had been so exhausting for her. Nonetheless, she did what she did every day: she ate breakfast, left the house, went to work, and then started walking home.

On the way home that day, Charlene stopped like every day in front of the Chocolate Factory, gazing at it for a few moments and dreaming of being able to enter it. But on this day, she noticed something strange: a shadow, very much like the one she had seen a couple of nights before, was visible once again behind one of the windows, only that because of all the snow and the wind she couldn't see who it was. And yet, she was now almost completely sure that the owner of that shadow could only be **_him_**. But why was he standing there all alone?

As she tried to find an answer, Charlene reached her house, where she found the four old grandparents and her mother huddled around the small television set they owned, that was set in front of the old peoples' bed.

"What's happening?" she asked.

"It's those Golden Tickets," her mother answered, withdrawing her gaze from the television set and looking at Charlene, "Two children found the first two."

Charlene's heart sank: so now only three tickets were left! She hurried besides the TV and eagerly listened to the news, where sure enough a journalist was talking about the two lucky finders of the tickets.

"The first Golden Ticket," said the announcer, "Was found by a German boy called Augustus Gloop." The television showed the image of a very fat boy ("I _told_ you he was going to be fat as a pig!" declared Grandpa George) with a large, round smiling face, his piggy little eyes darting back and forth as the journalists yelled questions; besides him was an equally large woman Charlene supposed was his mother, also beaming at the cameras, "Mrs Gloop, Augustus's mother, proclaimed that she thought it nearly impossible for her son not to find a Golden Ticket. 'We are very thrilled to visit Mr Wonka's factory,' she told the press 'And we are just as proud as can be!' When the journalists asked Augustus how he found the ticket, he said he had just bitten off the first bit from a new Wonka bar when he felt something hard in his mouth, something that wasn't nuts, or caramel, or cream, and when he looked, right before his eyes he saw the fortunate object glittering inside the candy wrapper."

"Despicable!" commented Grandpa George.

"What a PIG!" exclaimed Grandma Josephine.

"_The second Golden Ticket," the announcer continued, "Was found by a Miss Veruca Salt, who lives in England with her rich parents." Again, the television showed an image of the finder: this time there was a girl, who seemed to have the same age as Charlene, wearing a smug and satisfied expression on her face as she sat on an expansive looking couch between her parents, all three of them smiling contently at the cameras, "Mr Salt said he bought half a million bars of chocolate when his 'little girl' said that she absolutely __**had**__ to have a Golden Ticket."_'You see,' he explained, 'I'm in the nut business. I've got a whole lot of women working in my factory, peeling nuts all day long. So when I bought all these Wonka bars for my little Veruca, I told them _"Girls, you can stop peeling those nuts and start peeling the paper off of these chocolate bars instead!"_ It took three whole days to find the Ticket, and my, how dreadful it was to see my poor little girl scream and shout when I came home and told her I still didn't have her precious ticket! Oh, but I vowed I would find it, and indeed, on the third day one of the women **did** find it, so I bought it straight home to Veruca, and now she's all smiles again' Miss Veruca didn't have anything to add, except that she knew she was going to win one of the Tickets."

"How repulsing!" cried Grandma Georgina.

"Hey, wait a second!" exclaimed Charlene as the news carried on, "She didn't play right! It's not fair! Her father bought her up half a million bars, and _she_ didn't do anything to find it, she only said she wanted a ticket!"

"Charlene, darling," said Grandpa Joe, "Unfortunately not all girls are sweet and kind as you are. That girl was spoiled very badly by her parents, and no good can ever come with spoiling a child like that, believe me."

"Only three tickets left!" commented Mrs Bucket, "I wonder who will find them!"

Sure enough, the next evening the news reported the finding of two other Golden Tickets, and once again Charlene's heart sank even more, because now that she knew only one ticket was left in the entire world, she also knew that she was never going to find it.

"The third ticket was found by another lucky young lady called Violet Beuregarde," said the reporter, as the image of a girl standing in a trophy room dressed in a turquoise gymnastics suit, besides her mother who was dressed in the same way, appeared on the screen, "This is what Miss Beuregarde and Mrs Beuregarde told the press this morning. 'These are just some of the 263 trophies and medals my little Violet has won,' commented Mrs Beuregarde. 'I'm a gum chewer, mostly,' Miss Beuregarde herself explained, 'But when I heard about these ticket things, I laid off gum and switched to candy bars. Oh, and since it's that one kid is going to give this "special prize" better than all the rest? I don't care who those other four are , but that kid, it's gonna be me.' 'Tell them why, Violet.' Said Mrs Beuregarde. 'Because I am a winner.' Answered a convinced Miss Beuregarde."

"She's almost worse than the rich girl!" exclaimed Grandpa George.

"What a beastly girl!" exclaimed Grandma Josephine.

"The fourth finder was a boy called Mike Teavee. Unfortunately, when the press arrived at his house this morning, young Mike was too busy playing videogames to pay any attention to the journalists, so all we got are a few images of him," and a boy playing a videogame appeared on the screen, "And a confused explanation on how he found the Ticket which involved a complicated system code the little boy managed to crack. Now, there is only one more ticket left in the whole world, and people have already gone wild to try and find it. And now the whole world wonders, and is waiting to see the Fifth, the last finder of the last Golden Tickets. The question is: who will it be?"

"Sadly, not me." Said Charlene softly, before leaving the room and gong silently to bed.


	5. Chapter 4: A Sweet Surprise

**A/N: Hi guys! Back with more:) This chappie is a bit longer, so I hope you'll appreciate that… I must warn you though, up to here all I've posted was something I'd already written, so from now on the updates might be slowing down a bit since I actually have to _write_ what I post and not just go copy-paste :P LOL…anyway, love your reviews, as always…knowing somebody likes to read my writing makes me so happy!! And actually that's also what keeps me going with my stories!! Anyway, enough blabbering, here's your new chapter, hope you like it!! Willy Wonka rules ! ;) (don't worry, he's coming up next BTW)**

p.s. QueenofRandomness, why do you say that was a stupid idea? I think it's a wonderful start for a fanfic…heck, you got me curious, now I wanna read it:P Please post it??

XOXO  
KAYLA   
**Chapter 4 - A Sweet Surprise**

At breakfast the next morning, Charlene found her family reunited around the small television set, the four old people craning their necks to get a better look and Mr and Mrs Bucket standing on one side, all of them staring at the blazing screen. Charlene knew that at that time of the morning the newspaper headlines were shown on the news channel, but she wondered what sort of news was keeping her whole family glued to the screen instead of eating breakfast. She bid the family good morning, but no one answered, except for her mother, who signalled her to walk over quickly. Charlene did so and immediately found out why they were all standing there: the television was showing the front page of a newspaper, that was bearing a gigantic headline that occupied the entire front page:

RUSSIAN BOY FINDS THE LAST OF WONKA'S GOLDEN TICKETS!!!

Charlene's breath caught in her throat: so this was it. It was all over. No more tickets left.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Charlene dear…" said Mr Bucket, seeing his daughter's disappointed expression as she read the headline.

"That's all right," she answered, trying to fake a smile, "I knew I didn't have a chance."  
"We knew you would've wanted to find a Ticket," said Grandpa Joe, "But…look on the bright side: perhaps, perhaps this extraordinary event will be so thrilling for the entire world, that Mr Wonka will organize another one, maybe next year!"

"Yes, sure…" answered Charlene, even though she knew that there wasn't a single chance of that ever happening. "Well," she added sadly, "I'd better be off to work now…I don't want to be late. Goodbye," she said, waving as she gathered her things and left the house.

For the first time in her life, Charlene kept her face glued in a determined way to the ground, and she didn't even think about stopping in front of the Chocolate Factory, even though she knew that road so well that her head was automatically rising to gaze at the gates when she passed, so that she had to take control of herself and push her gaze back to the ground. She didn't stop, she didn't look, she didn't listen to anything on her way to work: all the world seemed suddenly frozen to her, and she found no use in wasting her time in being curious about what was happening now that the last Golden Ticket had been found.

Charlene was a simple girl, she had never asked for anything that she knew she couldn't obtain by herself, and now that for the first time she had longed to have, better, to find something that she knew she couldn't have but that she had the same chance of having as much as everybody else, and she hadn't found it…well, the disappointment and the anger were terrible. She had wanted that ticket so much!! But now…now it was really all over. She could've dreamt about finding one before, but now, there was no way she was every going to have it. No Golden Ticket. No Chocolate Factory. No Willy Wonka.

But rejecting the world sometimes prevents you from seeing something that could solve your problems. Indeed, since she hadn't looked around her that day, but had kept her eyes stuck firmly on the ground, Charlene hadn't seen the newspaper extra, that had been printed only a few minutes before and that the paper boys were now busy selling, the newspaper that had another gigantic headline on the front page, completely different and opposite from the one Charlene had read. Sure enough, it said:

RUSSIAN BOY A CLEVER FAKE: STILL ONE GOLDEN TICKET LEFT!!

But Charlene paid no attention to what was surrounding her, so she continued her way to work, ignoring the fact the faith had changed and that luck was finally about to turn her way.

"Charlene, _please,_ I'm begging you: pay _attention _to what you're doing!"

"Yes, sir, I'm sorry, sir," answered the girl sheepishly, as she bent down on her knees and began to pick up the candy she had accidentally spilled after colliding with the boss himself.

"Now, be quick, we need your help with the customers. I don't know why but Nikki signed in sick five minutes before we opened, so now it's just you, me and Albert running this shop. Come on, there's a bunch of customers out there. Go see if they need any help"

"Sure boss, straight away." Answered Charlene, putting the candy where it belonged and exiting the warehouse to enter the sweets shop once again.  
There were four people standing inside the room, but while three of them seemed to be fine, an old lady was standing with a rather confused expression on her face, as though she didn't quite know what she had to do. Charlene, feeling sorry for her, walked over and smiled kindly.

"May I help you, Miss?" she demanded politely.

"Huh?" said the old lady, still rather confused, "Oh, oh, dear, yes, thank you. I wanted to buy my little niece some candy, but…but it's been centuries since I last saw a shop like this, and I'm just so…it's all so odd!"

Charlene continued to smile, "No problem, Miss, I'll help you find what you need. Okey dokey, so you said you want to buy some candy…for your niece?"

"Yes, that's right. Such a sweet little girl, my dear Jackie."

"Does she have any favourite sweets?"

"Oh, my, no…I don't think so. I usually buy her chocolates, but last time I visited her she told me she wanted candy instead."

"I see," said Charlene as she began looking around the shop in search of some inspiration, "Humm…let's see, why don't we take a look at Mr Wonka's sweets, shall we? After all, they _are_ considered the best ones…this way, follow me please."

And she lead the way across the shop to the corner where all of Wonka's sweets were exposed.

"All right now, let's see. How about.." and she began bustling with some random sweets, "_Luminous Lollies, for eating at bed at night?_"

"Why, what a marvellous invention! Yes, I think I'll take two of those."

"All right. Can I ask you something? Your niece…does she study a lot?"

"Why, yes. She's such a bright little girl…."

"Ok, then she'll love…" and Charlene bent down to fetch another candy, "_Sugar Coated Pencils to eat in class."_

"Excellent!" said the old lady, "I'll have two of those as well! No, make that three!"

Charlene smiled, "Ok, now…I think there was one last thing I…oh, there it is!" and she reached out again, "_Wriggle Sweets that wriggle delightfully in your tummy after swallowing them! _Here, why don't you try one?_"_

"Why, young girl, you know these sweets so well! How did you do it? You gave me three different sweets, all of which I know are exactly the sort of things my dear niece is going to love!"

Charlene laughed, "It was easy, Miss. Children are pretty much the same. Besides," she added, "Don't thank me, thank the genius who made these wonderful sweets!"

Charlene asked if the old lady wanted anything else, then she guided her to **the cash machine**. She typed in the price of the sweets and told the total, twelve dollars, to the old lady who opened her purse and handed her seventeen dollars.

"I'm sorry, Miss, you gave me five extra dollars."

The old lady winked, "Those are four you, my dear. I know you'll use them wisely.." and she made a gesture towards the Wonka angle, "Thank you for your help."

And she left. Charlene, bewildered by this ending, took the extra dollars in her hands. She had receive this amount of money as a tip in very rare occasions, and she immediately began to wonder what she could do with it. But before she could think any further, another pack of customers entered the shop, so she hastily put the extra money in her apron pocket and got back to work.

It was nearly six when the last person exited the shop, and Charlene was finally able to hang the "CLOSED" sign on the door. She took her white hat off and sigh, walking silently towards the warehouse. As she was about to take her apron off, though, she suddenly remembered something: she still had the five dollars from that morning! She took the money in her hands and looked around the shop. Could she buy something with it? No, no, she told herself, her family needed it more than she did. But…oh, but how she longed for a piece of chocolate! And…oh, for Haven's sake, she was hungry, it had been another tiring day, and she had five dollars in her hands! Surely it wouldn't hurt if she spent only _one_ dollar on a Wonka bar, right? She made up her mind and walked over to the Wonka corner, taking a Wonka Scrumptious Fudgemallow Delight chocolate bar randomly from the stack and distractedly tearing off the paper.

And that's when the miracle happened.

As she tore the wrapping paper off from the bar, her eyes suddenly caught a sparkle.

Her heart skipped a beat.

Looking closer, she tore the wrapper all the way back and gasped.

There, standing right between her fingers and set before her bewildered eyes, was a Golden Ticket.

Wonka's last Golden Ticket.

She had it.

SHE HAD WONKA'S LAST GOLDEN TICKET!"

She let out a shrill yell of joy, unable to contain herself. But…but what about that Russian boy who had claimed to have found it? No, there must be a mistake…but suddenly. Charlene remembered hearing a conversation between two men she had helped earlier that day: they were talking about a "clever fake"…THAT'S IT! THE RUSSIAN BOY STORY WAS JUST A FAKE! HE HADN'T FOUND THE GOLDEN TICKET! _SHE_ HAD FOUND IT! _SHE_ WASN'T FAKING! THAT WAS WONKA'S LAST GOLDEN TICKET, AND NOW SHE WAS HOLDING IT IN HER OWN HANDS!

Yelling with joy. Charlene went into her changing room: on the way, she met the boss and the cook, and showed them the Golden Ticket.

"Charlene!" they exclaimed, "You're the fifth finder!"

"Yes I am!! I'M THE FINDER!!" Said Charlene, overwhelmed with emotions.

"Well, go on, quick, get changed and run home with that thing!" her boss commanded her, "And do be careful! Don't lose it! That things' precious!"

Charlene changed into her clothes at top speed and left the shop, running as fast as her legs could carry her across the city towards her house, filled with euphoria. As she passed the Chocolate Factory, she didn't stop, but made a sort of jump in mid-air, spinning around and looking at the window: there, as every day over the past week, was the same shadow Charlene always saw, standing silently watching the road. Unable to contain herself, Charlene's hand sprang in the air in a salute, she waved frantically at the window, towards the figure, sure that he would see her.

"I'LL BE SEEING YOU SOON!" she yelled towards the shadow, before spinning around again and continuing her race across town.

The Buckets were standing silently in the house, each of them doing something different, but all of them keeping a peaceful calm, when suddenly the door burst open and Charlene came running inside, the yells of joy breaking the silence of the house as the girl began to dance and jump all around, laughing and yelling and singing and skipping and running. After getting past the initial shock of her brusque entrance, Mrs Bucket eventually managed to calm her daughter down, and made her sit on the grandparents' bed as she asked her to explain what had happened that had made her so happy.

"Oh, MOM!" exclaimed the girl, talking very quickly, "Oh, I was working, and I helped a very kind old lady find some sweets, for her niece, and she gave me five dollars because I helped her," she caught her breath, "And later, I decided to buy a chocolate bar, and when I opened it, I had no idea that I would find a GOLDEN TICKET!!!"

The family froze.

"What did you say you found, Charlene?" asked Mr Bucket.

"You're pulling our legs, aren't you, darling?" asked Grandpa Joe.

Charlene smiled and took out the Golden Ticket, holding it at arm's length and showing it to the stunned family.

There was silence for a fair twenty seconds, before Grandpa Joe asked Charlene to give him the Ticket. Charlene handed it to him, and the old man brought the precious object closer to him until it was only a couple of inches from his face, because his sight was bad even if he had a thick pair of glasses on and he couldn't read the sign on the Ticket properly. When it was in front of his eyes, though, suddenly it came into focus and he read: GOLDEN TICKET. His eyes grew wide with surprise, and then, in front of the family's bewildered eyes, he jumped straight out of the bed, yelling: "Yiiipppeeeeeee!!!!" and beginning to dance all around the room with Charlene.

"READ IT ALOUD! Let's hear EXACTLY what it says!" he ordered, handing the ticked to Mr Bucket who began to read out loud:

"GREETINGS TO YOU, THE LUCKY FINDER OF THIS GOLDEN TICKET FROM MR WILLY WONKA. I SHAKE YOU WARMLY BY THE HAND. FOR NOW I DO INVITE YOU TO COME TO MY FACTORY AND BE MY GUEST FOR ONE WHOLE DAY. I WILLY WONKA WILL CONDUCT YOU AROUND THE FACTORY MYSELF SHOWING YOU EVERYTHING THERE IS TO SEE. AFTER THAT, WHEN IT IS TIME TO LEAVE, YOU WILL BE ESCORTED HOME BY A POSSESSION OF LARGE TRUCKS EACH ONE FILLED WITH ALL THE CHOCOLATE YOU COULD EVER EAT. AND REMEMBER, ONE OF YOU LUCKY FIVE CHILDREN WILL RECEIVE AN EXTRA PRIZE BEYOND YOUR WILDEST IMAGINATION. NOW, HERE ARE YOUR INSTRUCTIONS: THE FIRST OF FEBRUARY YOU MUST COME TO THE FACTORY GATES AT 10 AM SHARP. YOU'RE ALLOWED TO BRING ONE MEMBER OF YOUR FAMILY TO LOOK AFTER YOU. UNTIL THEN, WILLY WONKA."

"The first of February…" Mrs Bucket repeated, "But…but that's TOMORROW!"

"QUICK, CHARLENE!" exclaimed Grandpa Joe, "WE DON'T HAVE A MOMENT TO LOSE! Wash your face, comb your hair, blow your nose, clean your clothes, put some make up on, and for Haven's sake, wipe all that mud off your pants!"

"Ok, ok, wait a second, let's all calm down!" said Mrs Bucket, "First, we need to decide: who's going to go with Charlene?" "What do you mean?" said Grandpa Joe, "The girl doesn't need anybody! She's old enough to go all by herself, aren't you, dear?" Mrs Bucket looked at the old man, not entirely convinced, then at Charlene, "What do you want to do?" "Well," answered the girl, "I…I don't know. I mean, this is all so…thrilling, and…" her sentence died off, and she looked around, slightly lost, "Ok, I'll go…But I want you to be there when I go in!" "Of course we'll be there, darling! And don't worry, I'm sure this is going to be the most amazing experience of your entire life!" Grandpa Joe exclaimed, dancing around the room once again. 

All during that night, Charlene's excitement didn't die away, and she was sure it would only increase from now on. She couldn't believe it, her dream had finally come true! She was going to visit that factory! She was going to meet Mr Wonka!! Oh, she felt like the happiest girl in the entire world. For supper that night, the family celebrated, and all of them, apart from being allowed a second helping to cabbage soup, were given a piece of Charlene's magical bar of chocolate, which had held the Golden Ticket only a few hours before. Right after supper, they were about to go to bed when somebody knocked on the door. Wondering who it could be, Mr Bucket went to open, and as soon as he did, a flock of journalists invaded the small house, and the place was suddenly blinded by flashes and camera lights, and it was as if two hundred people had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, everyone trying to catch a glimpse of the Fifth Finder. Charlene found herself sitting on the old grandparents' bed, surrounded by all those journalists who began drilling her with questions.

"What's your name?" was the first one.

"Uhm…Charlene Bucket." She answered uneasily.

"What?" asked a voice from the back, "Raise your voice, young lady!"

"Charlene…CHARLENE BUCKET!!" she repeated, louder this time.

"When did you find this Ticket?"

"Where were you?"

"How many bars did you buy?"

"How does it feel to be the last lucky finder?"

"Gentlemen, please!" exclaimed Mr Bucket, "One question at a time!"

"How did you find the Ticket?" asked a woman in front of Charlene, holding a microphone.

"Well," the girl began, "I was just lucky, I guess. I…I work at Lollipops&Sugar, the sweets shop, and today I happened to help an old lady buy some sweets…by the way, they were all Wonka sweets, incidentally…and she gave me a five dollar tip, and when I finished working I decided to buy a Wonka bar and I just…" and she mimicked her action of opening the candy wrapper "…found it."

She was beginning to feel dizzy because of all those lights and flashes.

"Are you excited about visiting Mr Wonka's factory?" asked a man.

"Oh, yes, very." Charlene answered, her face lighting up, "I keep thinking that this is all a very good dream…"

"Why do you work in a sweets shop?" another man said, interrupting her.

Charlene opened her mouth to answer, but then closed it again. Why did she work in a sweets shop? She thought of a good answer before saying, "Because …because I love sweets, I guess. It just makes me happy, being in that shop surrounded by all those candies and chocolates and cakes, with all those colours and that sweet smell hanging in the air...it's just like…like my own kind of world, really."

The journalists kept on asking questions, and even though it was getting late, they gave no sign of wanting to leave the house. At last, Mr Bucket managed to get them out (well past midnight) so that Charlene could rest before the big day. But even thought it was late and she'd had a busy day, Charlene just couldn't sleep, so she lay in bed, looking at the figure of Mr Wonka's factory, lit up as always. Charlene saw the usual figure standing behind one of the lit up windows, and she smiled to herself. But tonight, for the first time since the figure had begun to appear at the window, it walked away and disappeared: a moment later, the light in window went off.

Charlene grinned. Well, after all, he certainly needed to rest for the big day, didn't he? she told herself before drifting off into a dream about a wondrous chocolate factory and a mysterious and charming chocolatier.


	6. Chapter 5: Willy Wonka

**Surprise!! I'm back with a new chapter! I'm sorry it took me so long, but hey, I warned you didn't I? ;) I've been totally caught up with my PotC stories, but for some reason I found myself re-opening this story and merrily typing away the words…they really seemed to just flow out of my imagination, which I can assure you is a very good thing!  
I have no idea how long the next update will take, I hope not as long as this one…but still, I hope you all appreciate this new chappie in the meantime! Be sure to leave me a comment, 'kay?  
One last thing, from now on don't expect to see and EXACT copy of the movie, one, beause that's not what I want, and two, because I don't know it by heart anymore so some scenes might change. Also, remember that Charlene's presence is inserted on purpose, to change the course of events…that's all I'm going to say for now! ;)  
Enjoy, and to our next chapter! **

**XOXO**

**Kayla**

**Chapter 5 - Willy Wonka **

As she had already predicted, Charlene didn't touch breakfast the next morning, for she was far too excited to even _think_ about eating something. The others barely touched their own food, so that within minutes the house had gone very quiet, and everyone could feel the tension rising.

"Hem, hem," said Mrs Bucket, clearing her throat, "Charlene dear, are you ready to leave?"

"Ah-" said Charlene, "As a matter of fact, yes…" she looked at herself and sigh: she was wearing the cleanest pair of pants she had, even though they still looked very shabby. Above the pants, she was wearing a plain sweatshirt. She wasn't satisfied with her appearance, not one little bit.

"Come with me, darling," said Mrs Bucket suddenly, rising from the table, "Let's go put some make up on you."

Charlene beamed: in the rare occasions in which her mother allowed her to use her make up, she always loved to look at herself in the mirror and admire how much it could change her face. The two of them walked the short way to Mr and Mrs Bucket's room, and Charlene went over to the little wooden make up station her mother owned: it wasn't fancy, and it was only made up of a small mirror, a little wooden desk, and a few containers laying on it.

Mrs Bucket smiled as she saw her daughter gaze excitedly at her own reflection as she watched her mother gather the few beauty items she owned, bringing them over to her and setting them down on the desk. Firstly, she took her hairbrush and began combing Charlene's long hair, untangling it. Then, she moved to face her daughter directly and told her to close her eyes as she applied a thin layer of foundation on her skin. She added some powder and blush on Charlene's high cheekbones. She handed Charlene a sparkling silver eyeliner pencil, which the girl applied carefully. After that, she added some pink lipstick, and looked at herself in the mirror: she didn't look like herself anymore! Charlene was the kind of girl, who looked pretty even without any make up - and even when she wore it, it was very low-key - and yet now she seemed so…different. So grown up, as a matter of fact.

Her mother checked her figure up and down, biting her lower lip in concentration. She seemed to be thinking deeply, and sure enough, after a moment's hesitation she briskly turned round and bent over the large trunk she used as a drawer. She bustled with some clothes, and finally took out a wonderful pale pink dress. It was decorated with a floral pattern, and had a satin pink lace wrapped around the waist.

"Perhaps," she said slowly, looking at Charlene as she showed her the dress, "This would be more appropriate for the occasion, don't you agree?"

Charlene couldn't believe her eyes. She knew her mother owned a couple of wonderful dresses, but also knew that they were almost never used, seeing they were so precious and it would cost them extra money to get them polished at the laundry. She almost felt tears forming in her eyes out of sheer commotion, and gently reached out to take the gown from her mother's hands. It felt soft and wonderful at the touch, and as she shed her unclassy clothes and pulled it over her head, Charlene was almost scared of ripping it. She managed to put it on, and it fit her like a glove. She was truly lovely. Her mother also leant her a pair of matching shoes, and a small fluffy coat that completed the arrangement.

"You're beautiful," her mother said softly.

Charlene looked at her reflection in the mid-length mirror hung on the wall, and admired the way she looked. Seeing it was time for her to leave, she got up and was about to exit the room, when her mother called her. Turning around, she saw her holding a pair of beautiful earrings in her hand. The only pair of earrings Charlene had ever owned were the studs she had been wearing since she'd first gotten her ears pierced. She slowly walked towards her mother, gazing at the pair she was holding: they were simple earrings, two heart-shaped ones with a small white jewel in the middle, but they still looked beautiful.

"I would like you to wear these today, Charlene," her mother said, handing them over to her.

"Mom, I…" Charlene began, "Are you sure?"

Mrs Bucket nodded, then went by her daughter's side, detatching the stud from her ear and replacing it with her earring, "These earrings were the ones I was wearing when I met your father, and when we went on our first date," she explained, as she moved over to Charlene's other side and detached the other stud, before replacing it as well, "Heaven knows, they could bring you the same luck. There," she added, stepping back and looking at Charlene. "You're absolutely perfect, honey."

"Oh, Mommy, I love you!" exclaimed Charlene, hugging her tightly.

"Come on, we'd better hurry or you'll be late!" Mrs Bucket urged her, and the two of them left the bedroom.

Grandpa Joe and Mr and Mrs Bucket were in the crowd of people who had gathered around the huge iron gates, while Charlene and was standing nervously in the free space right before the entrance. Along with her stood the other lucky finders of the tickets: Mike Teavee with his father, Augustus Gloop with his mother, Violet Beauregarde with her mother, and Veruca Salt with her father. For some strange reason, the place was very quiet: everyone was waiting with anticipation, for the invitation said "ten o'clock", and it was now a minute to ten. Nobody dared interrupt the moment, which seemed to stretch on forever. Charlene had stopped trying to calm herself down: she'd decided it was nearly impossible. So instead of ignoring her contorting stomach, she tried to focus on the positive aspects of what was happening to her: and yet, for some reason, she still couldn't relax. She wished the time to enter the factory would finally come, she wished someone would start talking, she wished there weren't so many people around, because that made her nervous, she wished she wasn't so nervous, she wished she'd never found the…suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted as the iron doors creaked open, the noise expanding and echoing in the silence. A voice boomed in the air out of nowhere, and Charlene jumped in surprise, and then listened. "Please enter," said the voice. The girl realized the sound was coming from a pair of large microphones set on top of the gates. The people standing in the crowd were going wild, taking photos and yelling excitedly as the lucky winners trudged their way through the snow and across the large front lot of the factory. Charlene shot her family one last nervous glance, waving and trying to smile at them, and they waved back, urging her to go on. She lost sight of them in the crowd and turned once again towards the factory. None of the winners knew exactly what to do, and they were all hoping to receive further instructions. Fortunately, the same voice that had spoken a few moments before came to their rescue. 

"Close the gates," it said, before directing itself to the guests, "I welcome to my humble factory. Who am I? Well…"

The metallic front doors that stood in front of the winners suddenly glided open, as a chirpy, happy tune began to play. Charlene watched, bemused, as an entire set of dolls began to dance on the stage-like platform, singing a silly song.

"_Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka_

_The amazing chocolatier_

_Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka_

_Everybody give a cheer_

_He's modest, clever, and so smart, _

_He barely can restrain it_

_There's so much generosity_

_There is nowhere to contain it…to contain it_

_To contain, to contain, to contain!"_

_The puppets continued their dance, and although the other guest simply stared with a mixture of shock and repulsiveness, Charlene found herself giggling out loud humming to the catchy tune, all of the nervousness she'd felt until then melting away. Meanwhile, the song kept on playing._

__

"_Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka_

_He's the one that you're about to meet_

_Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka,_

_He's the genius who just can't be beat_

_The magician and the chocolate wiz_

_He's the best darn guy who ever lived…_

_Willy Wonka, here he is!"_

_The melody ended with an ear-splitting note, as a ruby-red velvet chair rose from the middle of the puppets and fireworks set off on the sides. For a moment, Charlene's heart skipped a beat as she thought she was going to see Mr.Wonka sitting there. Nobody, however, was on the chair, and as the dolls caught fire and began to melt – they seemed to be made of a thick liquid that greatly resembled chocolate, in fact – the visitors stood, petrified on the spot, some of them smirking, others feeling embarrassed. Only Charlene was smiling again and clapping. _

"_Oh, bravo! Bravo!" she exclaimed to no one in particular._

She got startled when a male voice spoke from behind her, "Did you like it?"

"What –?" She began, spinning around and wondering who on earth was enjoying creeping up on her. She obviously turned too suddenly, because before she could finish her sentence, she bumped headfirst into the man standing behind her. She felt a painful thud as their heads crashed together, and both of them took a step back.

"Ouch!" said Charlene, rubbing her forehead.

"Good grief, do you have a tough head or what!" the guy said, and the girl finally realized that his was the same voice that had told them to enter the factory. She lowered her hand and focused her vision, looking at him.

He was wearing a heavy violet coat.

He held a cane filled with candy in his hand.

His head was bent down, his free hand clutching his top hat.

When at last he raised his gaze, she also saw that his eyes were obscured by a pair of large, white-rimmed squared glasses, and that his hair was cut into an old-fashioned bob that would suit very few people.

She had never met him, though somehow she knew exactly who he was the moment she set her eyes on him. He couldn't have been anyone else, really.

Maybe it was the weird outfit.

Maybe it was the candy cane.

Or maybe, it was the tingly laughter she heard coming from him when he saw her dazed expression.

Whatever had given his identity away, Charlene knew.

The one she was looking at was none other than the man himself.

The Amazing Chocolatier, in the flesh.

Mister Willy Wonka.


	7. Chapter 6: Into the Factory

**A/N: I know, I know – long time no see –er, update :P Sorry, this fic is turning out to be more complicated than I thought! Still, thank you all for your patience and, most of all, for your reviews ! I know the story just seemed like a bad copy of the movie up until now, but I swear things are gonna start changing from this moment on ! Of course I'll still insert random lines from the movie, my favourite ones more likely, but I'm determined to change the plot around…except for the main events ex.how the other kids get excluded from the group.**

**All right enough rambling, I know you're all eager to read this new chapter so without further ado…here it is!!**

**More to come soon, I promise!**

**Oh, and people? 1548 hits and 35 reviews? …Come on guys, you can do better than that! You know, you'll really push me to write more and more if you add comments… ;)**

**Anyhow, enjoy!**

**Love**

**XOXO**

**Kayla**

**Chapter 6 – INTO THE FACTORY**

"I-I…I'm sorry, Mister…Wonka," Charlene stammered.

"Hey," he replied, tilting his head sideways, "How'd you guess my name?"

Charlene didn't have an answer, and shook her head slightly, shrugging, before someone from the winners' group spoke up.  
"_You're _Willy Wonka?"

Both the chocolatier and Charlene turned around to see who had asked: it was Violet Beuregarde. She, like the rest of the guests, were staring at Mister Wonka, who merely grinned once again and merrily climbed the stairs, stopping in front of them all. He moved his gaze between the winners for a couple of moments, then stuttered slightly, as though he were trying to find the right words to say.

"G-good morning Starshine!" he finally exclaimed, "The Earth says hello!"

There was an awkward silence after his salute, but he didn't seem to notice. Instead, he hastily took out a little pile of cards from his jacket, and began to read out loud.

"Dear Guests, greetings!" he began, raising his eyes from the papers and smiling warmly to the group, before continuing, "Welcome to the factory! I shake you warmly by the hand," he outstretched his right hand, which was covered in a lilac glove, as he said this. Again, nobody reacted, except Charlene, who stared in wonder as he retrieved his hand and resumed reading, "My name is Willy Wonka."

"Then shouldn't you be up there?" asked Veruca Salt in a snotty voice, poiting to the seat behind Willy.

"Well I couldn't very well watch the show from up there, could I little girl?" he answered dryly, before announcing to the others, "All right, let's get moving, shall we?"

The visitors followed him as he spun around and made his way amongst the burnt dolls. They finally came to a heavy velvet curtain, which he pulled aside, revealing a gigantic atrium. They had entered the factory at last.

"Feel free to drop your coats anywhere," Willy said, taking off his own jacket and throwing it carelessly on the floor, along with his glasses. He then straightened the lighter coat he wore underneath that, and cleared his throat, turning to face his guests.

"Now," he began, "It will be my pleasure to guide you around my precious factory. I am going to show you every room that deserves to be seen, and I will tell you all about my genious inventions. HoweverI really _must_ ask to follow certain rules: first," he said, raising a gloved finger, " you must stick with the group at all times; second," he raised a second finger, "You must do as I say without taking any personal initiatives; and third," he raised a third finger, "Please, do _not_ touch anything unless given direct permission by yours truly, 'kay?" The group nodded, and he beamed widely, "Great! Come on then, we've got loads to see!" He began walking along the corridor, but Augustus Gloop interrupted him.

"Hey!" he exaclaimed, and Willy looked back at him with a questioning look, "Don't you want to know our names?"

"Ah…is that actually necessary?" asked Willy, without a hint of sarcasm.

"Well, yeah!" said Mike Teavee, raising an eyebrow, "What do you wanna do, keep calling us "guests" for the whole tour?"

"…Would that be wrong?" Willy said, confused.

"You can't be serious," said Mr.Salt with a slight chuckle, but seeing Willy's serious expresion, he added, "You _are_ joking, aren't you?"

"No, I'm not," replied the chocolatier, "Besides, I _know_ your names already. What did you think? I'm the one who set the contest, you know."

"Oh yeah?" Mike challenged, "Try me!"

"Ok," said Willy, accepting the challenge, "You're the little devil who craked the system to find the tickets. You're name's Mike Teavee. That makes you," he moved his gaze to Mike's Father, "Mr.Teavee. You," he moved on to Veruca, "Are Veruca Salt. You're the spoiled brat who made her father buy a whole stack of my bars for Goodness knows what price in order to get a ticked. Of course, this means you," he looked at her father, "Are Mr.Salt. As for you," he carried on, now looking at Violet, "You're Violet Beauregarde, the gum-eater who started eating chocolate just to add the Golden Ticket to the rest of all you're trophies. Your mom's obviously Mrs.Beauregarde. Your, my dear boy," he said, referring to Augustus, "Are evidently Augustus Gloop. Your mother, Mrs.Gloop, bragged to the journalists about you eating so much it would've been impossible for you not to find a ticket. And lastly, you," he set his eyes on Charlene, and for a moment, he hesitates in seeing her lower her eyes shyly and blushing. Instead of speaking with the same careless tone he'd used with the other kids, Willy smiled slightly and took a step towards her, before saying much more gently, "You're the lucky girl who found the last Golden Ticket just yesterday. Charlene, right?"

The girl blushed even more in hearing him speak her name, and she nodded, smiling back at him.

"So," he then said, returning to face Mike Teavee, "Now that I've prooven I _do_ know all your names, do you think we can start our tour, or is there anything else you wish to ask?"

Mike mumbled something under his breath that sounded like, "Whatever," and Willy nodded his head once, then said to the others, "Off we go then!"

He passed by Charlene and grinned at her. She returned the smile, and they all started following him down the long, metallic hallway. At last, they reached the far end of it, and Charlene noticed a small door on the wall in front of them. Curious, she crunched down towards it to get a better look, and everyone else did the same, Willy standing closest to the wall and looking proudly at the tiny door.

"This door," he proclaimed, "Leads to the most important room in the entire factory."

"Why is it…so small?" asked Mike, speaking everone's mind.

"It's to keep all the great big chocolatey flavour inside!" Willy answered happily.

"Huh?" said Mike, frowning, though Willy didn't pay attention to him.

Instead, he stood up and took a large set of keys from his jacket, picking one and unlocking the small door. There was a metallic click, and he grinned to the group, purpousely waiting to open the door. He moved his alert gaze amongst his guests, and lastly rested his eyes on Charlene, who was eagerly waiting to find out what was waiting for them. His grin widened, and he finally pushed the door open, revaling that the not only the small door, but the entire wall was in fact one big gate. It opened wide, and the sight that met the winners' eyes made them all gasp in surprise.

And suddenly, they all understood what made that factory so special.


	8. Chapter 7: The Chocolate Room

**A/N: NEW CHAPTER !! HOORAY! I'd say this calls for a celebration!! –cheers- And I have to thank **Haruki Batosai **over at DeppImpact Fanfiction for giving me the link to a wonderful CATCF video on Youtube that reminded him of this story – and helped me write this chapter !! **

**Many thanks for those of you who have reviewed, and most of all thank you for your patience. As I've said before, these updates might take long, but I have solemnly vowed to finish ALL of my stories, sooner of later…so no fear, these chapters will keep on comin' …sooner or later, anyway! P There are two things I must warn you about: first, I took Grandpa Joe out of the story. I know he's one of the main chracters, but believe me, having him would've blocked my whole story, and you'll see why later on. So, Charlene's alone in the factory. Secondly, I've decided to exclude the Oompa Loompa songs, A-because I don't like 'em and B-I don't want to waste time writing them. So yeah, that's it.**

**Now I'll leave you to your chapter, I'm sure you're all going to be happy to read it! And it's slightly longer than the previous one, hope that makes you happy as well! )**

**To our next update!**

**Xoxox**

**Kayla**

**p.s. in case you want to watch it too, the video is here: suggest you watch it…it's very cool. Very much "this" story, if you ask me. Haruki Batosai was right !! ) See ya, folks! Enjoy, R&R!!!**

**Chapter 7** **- The Chocolate Room**

The five winners and their parents froze on the spot, mesmerized by the scene that had just met their eyes. The bright colours of the room contrasted with the dull greyness of the atrium they'd left behind. The place was enormous, almost the size of a football pitch.

Charlene felt as though she'd accidentally strayed straight into a dream and had just entered another world, because everything she saw was extraordinarily fantastic and stunningly beautiful. Her eyes were darting out of control left and right, trying to take in everything she was seeing at the same time.

There were so many marvellous things in the room that she couldn't decide where to begin. The first thing that caught her eye was how much green there was: the floor was almost entirely covered in a bright, shiny grass that almost looked too perfect to be real. A moment after, the girl moved on to examine the trees sprouting out from the ground, and she drew her head back, shaking her head as though she couldn't believe her eyes: they weren't covered in leaves…they were all made out of…_candy_! _Completely_!

There were different types of them: some had big, fat marshmallows instead of branches and leaves, and their trunk was made out of red candy; others consisted in weird liqorice strings, entwining together in different ways; some of them had small coloured pumpkins set besides their trunks; some were towering piles of chocolates, stuck together in a treelike form; and others still were like weeping willows, with caramelized red apples hanging from their branches.

But all of this was nothing compared to what was swishing and splashing down from the far end of the room. A gigantic, enormous waterfall, overflowing with brown, dark chocolate.

Now, that had been probably what had shocked the visitors the most: not the fact that Mr.Wonka had somehow managed to actually fit a waterfall into the room, but the fact that it was made of chocolate!

The liquid flowed into a large river, which winded across the room, down under a couple of bridges that divided the space into little islands, and then spread out in various small lagoons.

The sound of the waterfall, together with the bright colours of the room, and the candy-made trees, made everything seem too beautiful to be true.

At last, the group seemed to snap out of their daze, and each one of the guests began talking out loud all at once, covering up each other's voices in a confused excited jabber.

"Amazing!"

"Look at those trees!"

"Did you see the waterfall?"

"Wow!"

"Do you reckon it's real chocolate?"

"Ah…people?" said Willy tentively, trying to attract everybody's attention, and failing.

"Is that actually _candy_?"

"Of course it is!"

"What's that over there?"

"People?" repeated Willy, a little louder. Still, nobody seemed to take notice of him.

"Wonder how much chocolate's in the river…"

"It's bound to be delicious!"

"What about-"

"_People!"_ Willy shouted, finally losing his temper. The group silenced at once. "Thank you!" he said, slightly glaring at their behaviour, before saying, "Now, I understand this is all very exciting and wonderful for you, but please, try to stay calm, ok? Don't lose your heads. Just stay very…very…calm." He stretched the last words out, speaking them very slowly. A moment later he raised his cane and beckoned them forward, "All right, folks, follow me!"

He led them further into the room, walking along a small path that was built amongst the grass. They soon reached the first bridge and, as they were crossing it, a shadow suddenly hovered over them for a second. Slightly startled, they looked up: a huge, transparent pipe was drifting above the chocolate river, connected to the ceiling. After a few moments, it stopped moving and slowly dipped into the liquid to gather it up.

"What's that?" asked Mrs.Beauregarde, poiting a long, slender finger at the pipe.

"That?" echoed Willy, "Well, that's one of the pipes that takes up the chocolate from here and carry it away all over the factory. Isn't it neat?"

They had now reached the other bank.

"What about the waterfall?" asked Charlene.

"The waterfall, my dear, is most important," explained Willy, gazing at her intently, "It mixes all the chocolate up. Makes it light and frothy. Oh, and incidentally," he added, addressing the others as well, "No other factory in the world mixes its chocolate by waterfall!"

"Oh, I bet it!" said Charlene, and he put on a look of satisfaction and pride.

"Now, you just…go ahead and have fun!" he then announced, "Taste whatever you feel like tasting, eat whatever you feel like eating, but please, I beg of you, do _not_ touch the river! It is absolutely necessary that my chocolate remains untouched by human hands! Other than that…enjoy!" He beamed at them, waving his hands as though encouraging them to move.

At once, the group scattered around the room, everyone heading in a different direction. The children all stood besides their parents, whilst Charlene was by herself, slowly moving her gaze across the scenery, unsure of what to do. _Now that her dream of entering the factory had come true, she didn't know where to begin! Willy was alone as well, standing not too far away from her. _

_"Don't you like sweets?" he asked her tentatively after a moment or two, frowning a little and tilting his head sideways._

_"What?" said Charlene, turning to face him, "Oh! No, absolutely! I love sweets, I really do! It's just that...well, I don't know where to start! It's all so…beautiful."_ She said the last word dreamily, with a sigh.

"Oh yes, it's very…beautiful," he replied, apparently referring to the room, but actually keeping his eyes on her. She felt her cheeks turn pink.

As a matter of fact, Willy was quite impressed by her reaction. Of course, he knew the Chocolate Room was always a thrill to see for the first time, but usually – as the rest of the guests had prooven – the enchantment would last only for a few moments. Instead, Charlene still seemed to be lost in her own emotion. In fact, she was secretly wishing she could stay there forever. Never, in her wildest dreams, had she imagined something so spectacular.

"Well then," he said, suddenly coming up with an idea, "If you don't know where to start, why don't you let me guide you?"

She smiled, "I'd love that!"

He smiled back, "Come on!" He jerked his head to the left, heading in that direction right ater. She followed him.

They walked up the small grassy hill, always staying on the path. 

"_This grass…can you eat it?" asked the girl, inspecting it._

"_Of course you can!" he answered, stopping and turning around._

"_Coloured dissolving sugar, I suppose?" she guessed._

"_Why…yes," he said, surpised she'd recognized the ingredient immediately._

_Charlene nodded, "And I presume even those trees are eatable?"_

_Willy nodded, "Every single thing you see in this room is eatable!"_

"This is amazing," she commented, shaking her head slighlty, "How'd you do it?"

"Well, I guess you could say it's just a talent I've got, for these sort of things," he said, "Look, did you notice? Those nests up those trees...they're filled with chocolate eggs! Oh, and see that pipe coming up just now? That's the one that takes the chocolate to the fudge room. See how it works? It dips inside the river," and as he said that, Charlene saw the pipe immerge inside the chocolate, "Takes up the chocolate, and then - _zoom!_ – sends it flying straight to the room. Now, you see-"

"Daddy, look over there!"

Both Willy and Charlene turned to see who had just yelled: it was Veruca Salt. She was holding a lollipop in her hand, while poiting towards the river bank opposite to where they were. Charlene followed her direction and noticed a group of what looked like small men, wearing red and white uniforms, joyfully marching around amongst the candy grass and apparently taking care of some duties.

"What _are_ those?" asked Veruca, in a snotty voice.

The rest of the group had begun to gather besides her and Mr.Salt, and everybody's eyes were pointed on the little men.

"Come on," Willy told Charlene, and they too joined the group.

"Are they even real _people_?" asked Mike Teavee.

"Of course they're real people," said Willy, as he and Charlene arrived besides them and he made his way to the font of the group, "They're Oompa Loompas."

"Oompa Loompas?" echoed Mr.Salt, perplexed.

Willy nodded, "Imported. Directly from Oompaland."

"There's no such place," objected Mr.Teavee.

"_What?_" said Willy, glaring at him.

"Mr.Wonka," the man continued, "I teach high school geography, and I'm here to tell you…"

"_Well_," Willy cut in, "Then you'll know all about it and know what a terrible place it is," he leered once more at Mr.Teavee and then returned his attention to the rest of the group, "You see, I went to Oompaland in search of new exotic flavours for my sweets. It's really a terrible place, infested with the most fowl creatures on earth…especially those wicked Whangadoodles! Yuck," he made a disgusted face, and then continued, "In any case, I went there looking for flavours…and instead, I found the Oompa Loompas. They lived in a single tribe, and they were desperate, because they couldn't find any decent food and were forced to live on horrible foods…which I'd really rather not discuss…so, I came up with an idea. The Oompa Loompas, you must know, crave only for one thing: cocoa beans. And of course, as you all know, cocoa beans is what chocolate is made of. But of course, they were so unlucky that it was really rare for them to be able to set hands on a single cocoa bean, and when they did…well, you can imagine the celebrations! So, knowing this, I went to the Oompa Loompa chief and told them to come to work here in my factory. In exchange, they'd have all the cocoa beans they could ever want. And so, here they are…as I said, directly from Oompa Land. I feel I must warn you though," he added, "They _are_ quite mischievous," a sly grin crept across his face, "Always making jokes."

"AUGUSTUS!" Mrs.Gloop suddenly hollered, making all of them jump, "AUGUSTUS! THAT IS NOT A GOOD THING YOU DO!"

Everybody's eyes moved from the Oompa Loompas to the river bank not far from them, where Augustus Gloop was bending down, with his face just above the river, scooping big handfulls of chocolate into his mouth.

"Oh, dear," commented Willy, rolling his eyes, "What did I say?" he sigh, and then said, in a louder voice so that Augustus could hear him, "Hey little boy? My chocolate must be untouched by human hands! I thought we'd agreed on that earlier!"

But the fat boy wouldn't listen, and kept on wolfing dow the sweet liquid. Suddenly, in a flash, it happened: he fell right over into the river, and with a thick- _plump!_ - he sank inside the chocolate. Mrs.Gloop shrieked.

"AUGUSTUS!" she then turned to Willy, eyes bulging, "DO SOMETHING! HE CAN'T SWIM! HE'LL DROWN! QUICK! QUICK! SAVE HIM! SAVE HIM! AUGUSTUS!"

Again, Willy rolled his eyes at the woman's hysterics, but before anyone could move a muscle, they saw the pipe Willy had talked to Charlene about before head straight towards the boy. They all watched as the pipe slowed down, and then sank inside the liquid. Charlene gasped slightly. The pipe began pulling the chocolate up, and a vortex formed inside the river, dragging Augustus towards the pipe. Everyone stood staring in shock, as the boy disappeared under the surface for a moment, and the reappeared immadiately…_inside_ the pipe, this time.

"What now?" asked Mr.Salt, speaking everyone's mind.

They watched as Augustus was shot up the pipe, getting stuck briefly and then being pulled away right after, directly into the tank set above the pipe and out of their sight. Nobody spoke, an icy silence falling upon them.

"Where does that pipe lead to?" Mrs.Gloop finally dared ask.

"That pipe? Well, it leads to the room where I make the most delicious strawberry flavoured chocolate coated fudge," answered Willy sincerely.

"Then…my Augustus is going to be turned into strawberry flavoured chocolate coated fudge, and they'll be selling him by the pound all over the world?" she asked, her voice trembling with fear.

Willy suddenly felt sorry for her, and made sure to sound reassuring, "No, I wouldn't allow it," but then, he couldn't keep from adding, "Besides, can you imagine Augustus-flavoured chocolate coated fugde? _Ew, _no one would buy it!"

Mrs.Gloop stared at him, but he didn't take notice. Instead, he turned around and made a strange sound, and a moment later they saw an Oompa Loompa rush up to meet him.

"I want you to take Mrs.Gloop to the fudge room, okay?" Willy ordered, "Help her find her son.." He crossed his arms on his chest, and the Ooompa Loompa did the same, nodding. Willy thenk beckoned Mrs.Gloop to follow the little man, and she did, leaving the group.

"Well, that was unexpected," said Willy, scratching his head, "I guess…we'll just carry on with the tour, right?" And he jerked his head to their right, "Come on, this way."

As the group followed, staying a few paces behind, still shaken by what had just happened, Charlene walked up besides Willy.

"Will he be all right?" she whispered to him.

"Of _course_," he answered, "He'll be _fine_! Nothing to worry about," he flashed a dazzling smile at her, before turning serious and frowning, "Ah, that is…I hope not."

Charlene giggled slightly. They had reached the river bank, and they stopped. Charlene looked at Willy with a questioning look.

"You'll see," he said simply, and just as the others joined them, they heard the distant sound of drums, coming their way and getting louder and louder by the second.


	9. Chapter 8: Down the Chocolate River

**A/N: **Hiya, people! Hehe, surprised to see a new chapter so soon? ;) Ok, just so you know,(since a lot of you have told me how they'd like to see the plot change from the original movie scenes) I HAVE begun to add some extra things from now on, so I hope you'll like that...

A big thank you and free chocolates go to everybody who reviewed my last chapter: Angels-heart1, Ge the Turk, Mandi96, Miz-Nu-Booty, Alchemelia, SparrowsVixon, almightyswot, Phantom's Ange, Diamonde, dreamer 3097, princess moon shadow, booklover, Lady Lithioniel… boy, that was a long list!! LOL But seriously, you don't know how much I aprreciate all of your compliments, and I'm so happy so many of you like this story! I hope I won't disappoint you as we carry on!

But enough of that…here's the next chapter! Hope you enjoy it (and, if I may, just a quick suggestion to those of you who DON'T? honestly, guys, if you don't like it, then don't read it! ;P)

I hope to be back soon!

Love to all,

Xoxox

Kayla

**Chapter 8 – DOWN THE CHOCOLATE RIVER**

Sure enough, only a few moments later they all turned their heads to see an enormous pink boat appear from behind one of the bridges. A large number of Oompa Loompas, all of whom were wearing the same turquoise outfit, were rowing the vessel towards the bank, following the rhythm set by an Oompa Loompa who was playing a drum at the prow of the boat.

The guests admired the vessel approached them, finally coming to a stop just in front of where they were standing. The Oompa Loompas observed the strange visitors for a moment, before they all burst out laughing.

"What are they laughing about?" asked Violet, feeling offended.

"Ah, it must be from all those cocoa beans they've eaten!" Willy supposed, before adding, "And incidantally, that's one of the effects of chocolate: it can make you feel all happy and giddy, and sometimes it gives you the feeling…" he came to rest his eyes upon Charlene just then, "…of being in love." He finished. For a moment, he and Charlene looked at each other, both of them noticing a warm, fuzzy feeling spreading inside them.

"Er…Mr.Wonka?" asked Mr.Salt, after a few embarassing seconds of silence, "Don't you thing we should…er…get going?"

"W-what?" said Willy, finally snapping out of his daze and breaking eye contact with Charlene, "Oh, yeah…sure, sure…a-all aboard, then!" he announced, with a forced giggle.

Mr.Teavee and Mike were the first ones to step onto the boat, closely followed by Mrs.Beauregarde and her daughter, and right after Mr.Salt and Veruca. Each of them swayed slightly as they tried to find balance on the ship, and eventually they all managed to take a seat. Charlene walked to the edge of the river next: there was a slight height difference between the boat and the bank, so she prepared herself to jump onto it like everybody else had done.

"Oh no, wait," Willy unexpectedly interrupted her, "Here, allow me," he said, as he climbed onboard before her and then turned around, offering her his gloved hand. She was surprised by his kindness, and gladly took it, gracefully stepping onto the vessel. She tripped lightly, and stumled forward, landing just in front of Willy. "Oh…careful!" he said, grinning.

"S-sorry," the girl mumbled, feeling like an idiot as she stepped back from him and sat down.

"No problem," he said, also sitting down, just besides her, and then raising his head to instruct the Oompa Loompas, "Onwards!"

The little men started rowing again, and the boat slowly began to move away from the bank. They sailed smoothly across the brown surface of the river, as everyone took in once more the beauty of the strange, wonderful objects in the room. For several minutes, nobody spoke, or at the most, the children whispered something to their parents. Charlene and Willy, in the meantime, stood together at the far end of the boat. Suddenly, Willy seemed to have an idea: as nobody else was watching, he reached under his seat, took out an empty ceramic coffee cup, and then bent over the side of the boat, dipping the cup into the cup and then straightening back up again.

"Here, this is for you," he said, a bit shyly, offering the cup to Charlene.

Her eyes lit up: she hadn't tasted hot chocolate in _ages_! And the smell coming from the cup told her _this_ chocolate had to be amazing.

"Thank you," she said, equally as shy, taking the cup.

As she did so, their hands accidentally brushed together, and they felt a little bolt of electricity run up their arms. They broke the contact right after, Charlene holding the cup and bringing it to her lips, as Willy watched to see her reaction. She took a sip, and was thrilled to feel the creamy, dense liquid flow into her mouth and down her throat. She closed her eyes, savouring that wonderful taste, as a smile came across her face.

"It's so delicious!" she exclaimed.

"You like it?" he asked cheerfully, "You know, it's because this chocolate," he then said, raising his voice as to attract everybody else's attention as well, "Is mixed by waterfall. No other factory in the world-"

"You've already _said_ that," Veruca rudely interrupted him.

He stood with his mouth hanging open for a moment, taken aback by her comment, but then immediately regained his posture, as though it hadn't bothered him. On the other hand, though, Charlene felt offended for him: frowning, she took a good look at Veruca for the first time.

She could tell the girl was about her same age, although they couldn't have been more different. Veruca's hair was carefully curled and gently tucked behind her ears, she was wearing an expensive-looking dress, and had what looked like professional make-up on her delicate features. She was quite beautiful, if not for her terribly rude attitude and spoiled nature. Charlene could tell she was one of those superficial girls she always saw at school, girls with lots of money but who mostly knew nothing about real values and emotions.

When she saw Charlene staring at her, Veruca raised an eyebrow. Then, after she'd quickly examined the girl's face and quickly labelled her as someone inferior, she moved her gaze to the girl's lap, and narrowed her eyes when she saw she was holding the cup of chocolate in her hands. Her eyes shot back up to meet with Charlene's, but the girl was strong enough to support her icy glare and return it. If there was one thing she'd learnt in her life, it had been to deal with snotty people like Veruca, who judged her before even knowing her name. With a last smirk, Veruca turned her back to Charlene and Willy once more.

Charlene sigh, and then noticed they were now rapidly heading towards a dark tunnel.

"Ah…Mr.Wonka?" she asked, slightly anxious, as the boat sailed straight into the darkness, "W-where are they taking us?"

"Oh, don't worry," he answered, "They know exactly what they're doing."

"Oh, all right, that's good, I- " she replied just as some lights suddenly went off, illuminating the tunnel. When she saw that there was a wall just ahead of them, and that the river continued downward, she gulped.

"_What's the matter?" Willy wanted to know._

"_Well, ah, funny story really, you see…" Charlene began, as the ship kept on moving further and further towards the drop, "I'm terribly afraid of hei – IIIIIIIIIGHTS!" she yelled, as they suddenly felt themselves being pulled downwards. _

_The other winners also gasped in surprise, but evidently none of them were afraid of heights as Charlene was. The poor girl, unable to contain herself and not really caring about what the others would say, shut her eyes and cowered on her seat. She felt the boat swish forwards, and then sideways, and then back forwards again, but she didn't dare open them. She heard Willy laughing at her behaviour, but she couldn't help it. After a few moments, though, the boat jerked roughly to the left, and she let out a small cry, suddenly clutching onto Willy's arm before she could control herself. She heard him stop laughing and gasp: looking up, she see him looking stunned, and noticed he was now extremely tense._

_Feeling extremely embarrassed, she quickly let go of him. _

_"S-sorry," she mumbled._

_"It's…it's all right," he answered, feeling a strange jolt in his stomach as she let go._

_They looked different ways, as the awakwardness passed, and then turned back to face each other, smiling a bit tensely but then feeling better knowing it was really all right since nothing had happened. Meanwhile, the journey continued._

_Charlene was still terrified of what they were going through, but the brief contact with him had strangely made her feel calmer, so that she managed to keep her eyes open…that is, until she saw the boat slide sideways, heading towards two pillars that were holding up the ceiling, and for a moment it seemed as though they were about to crash into them. She shut her eyes again, hunching, and opened them once more only after she felt they'd safely gotten past the pillars._

_In the meantime, Willy was lost in his own thoughts: why had he felt butterflies in his stomach when she'd suddenly touched him? He didn't like contact with people, usually, but he hadn't been bothered by the slight or accidental contact they'd been with Charlene until then. And even though she'd taken him by surprise by holding onto him so suddenly and he'd reacted the way he had reacted, now that she'd let go…well, he felt…strange. As though – maybe – he…didn't want her to let go? He couldn't understand: why was he feeling this way? _

_At last, their rapid journey ended, as the boat splashed into another calm lagoon. They were still sailing along the same river, but the scenery had changed radically around them: they were now inside a big tunnel, with oval metal doors lined up on its sides, and signs above them describing what was inside. Charlene read some of the signs, wishing she could see every room. At last, she saw them coming to a door that was labelled:_

_**INVENTING ROOM**_

"_Stop!" Willy exclaimed, making everybody jump. The Oompa Loompas docked besides that room, and Willy jumped to his feet, "You guys have got to see this room!"_

_And he promptly disembarked, helping Charlene down like he'd done before. He did this because somehow it felt important for him to show her he'd already forgotten about that weird moment between them, and on her behalf the girl felt relieved and glad to see that he hadn't been offended by her action. Meanwhile, the other guests had disembarked as well, and they all stopped in front of the door, unsure of what to expect from this next room._


	10. Chapter 9: The Inventing Room

**A/N: ****Yes, I am back and this time.. I HAVE A CHAPTER!! Yay:P I just realized…95 reviews! Whoa! You guys **_**really**_** like this story, don't you? I'm amazed! And I am very proud to present the next part of it to you!Many thanks to everyone who reviewed my latest changes, I'm glad you all seem to agree they all make the story fin in better and clear it up. **

**Mia Labyrinth, dreamer 3097,****Ge the Turk, Miz-Nu-Booty,****ilikestories,****almightyswot, ****thanks guys!**

**Silvia X., ****thanks for the compliment, and don't worry,you're not the only Depp-obsessed gal here! ;) I'm ****thrilled to know you noticed my PotC stories! Thanks!**

**smart-monkey7, ****don't worry, Charlene's description hasn't changed!**

**SlytherinTwinCC, ****I'm honoured you took your time to read and review my fic! Thank you so much, and it's always nice to read your comments:)**

**Now, since I've seen how much you all seem to like the story,I've tried to make this chappie a bit longer…hope you enjoy that! ;) **

**And if I may, I'd like to dedicate this one to Haruki Batosai, who so kindly sent me a list of awesome Willy Wonka videos that boosted up my inspiration to continue the story! Thanks mate:)**

**And now, without further ado…chapter 9 !! **

**Oh, just two more quick things: you'll probably start to notice I'm detatching myself from the original movie script by inserting "extra" scenes and not copying the exact same dialogue from the original ones…And on a totally different note, if you like my fics or Johnny please go check out my new forums, I'd love to hear from you all! ;P**

**To out next update! Love – and candy – all around! Xoxoxo Kayla xoxoxo **

**Chapter 9 – THE INVENTING ROOM**

"Now _this,"_ the chocolatier proclaimed as he pushed the Inventing Room door open and led them inside, "Is _the_ most important room in the entire factory!"

Charlene looked around: the room was mostly made out of metal, and the space was filled up with all sorts of odd-looking machineries. Some of them puffed out smoke now and then, others made strange whirring noises, others still had numerous clocks and buttons set out before them. There was a mixture of hissing, boiling and whizzing, which made the atmosphere very active and alive. There were also round tables set here and there, loaded with what would've normally looked like regular science sets, but which were actually used for Mr.Wonka's creations. Now and then a popping sound could be heard, together with all the rest of the noises.

"This, you see," Willy was saying in the meantime, "Is the room where I create all of my inventions. That's why it's so important, and that's why I brought you here. Now," he added cheerfully, "Once again, you are free to look around, but _please_, don't touch anything! Understood?"

The winners nodded and then scattered around to explore the room, while Charlene was left once again by herself. Willy saw this, and was about to work up the courage to go talk to her again, because he'd liked how they had talked back in the Chocolate Room, but before he could move, an Oompa Loompa tugged on his coat to attract his attention, and he had to listen to him instead.

Meanwhile, Charlene was drawn to one of the tables of the room, around which four other Oompa Loompas where gathered. Unlike the ones in the Chocolate Room, these were wearing shiny black uniforms, and big, dark spectacles, and all four of them looked tremendously distressed for some reason.

Frowning slightly, Charlene decided to go see what the problem was: as she reached them, she saw they were apparently troubling over a stack of papers, scattered across the table. Right in the middle of the table was a cooking set: a large bowl filled with a semi-dense liuid, and all around that were glass containers filled with colored liquids, a couple of cooking tools, and a series of small coloured boxes, each one containing a different ingredient.

The Oompa Loompas looked worried as they re-read their papers, crossed them out, examined the cooking set, or simply hung their heads upon the table in defeat.

"Ah, excuse me?" the girl began, feeling slightly uneasy when the little men turned her way, "It…looks like you're in trouble," she continued, "What's wrong?"

She had lowered herself so that she was at their same level. The Oompa Loompas exchanged quick questioning glances, and for a moment Charlene thought she'd been wrong to interrupt their work, but the one sitting closest to her turned to face her, and sigh heavily.

"Well," he said in a tiny voice, "You see, Mr.Wonka has a new project he wants to deliver by the end of this month. But he was having trouble with the new recipe, and so he asked us for our help like he usually does…but we can't figure out what's wrong with the fomula!"

"Why is something supposed to be wrong?" questioned Charlene.

Again, the Oompa Loompas exchanged worried looks, before the same one answered, "We're sorry, Miss, but we're not allowed to discuss Mr.Wonka's recipes…you'll understand, we hope."

"Oh," said Charlene, "Yes, of course, I understand. I'm sorry I interrupted you."

The Oompa Loompas nodded and then returned to their papers. Charlene got up and made to leave, but when she saw one of the copies of the formula right in front of her, her curiosity took over. She glanced to check that the four were busy, and when she saw they weren't paying attention to her anymore, she quickly began to read the paper. It was nothing more than a list of ingredients, and besides them the amount in which they were supposed to be used.

She mentally checked the first couple of ingredients after reading the description written at the top of the page: the new invention seemed to be a revolutionary substance for sick kids. Whenever they had to take awful-tasting medicines, by adding just a couple of drops of the invention they could alterate the most fowl medicine and make it taste sweet and delicious without changing its efficiency.

Scrolling down the page and reading the various instructions on how to make the substance, Charlene read, "_And by now, the liquid should have turned from bright limegreen to cute pink, and the surface should be slightly bubbling by itself."_

However, peering into the bowl on the table, Charlene saw that the liquid stirring inside it was nothing like a "_cute pink_", nor was it bubbling. Right now, it was still "_bright limegreen_", and it seemed to be steaming while steadily turning turquoise. The girl thought about it: what could be wrong with the ingredients? She read the list over again, pausing in between each one and thinking about how that might affect the substance. She stopped when her eyes paused on one of the last names on the formula: could _that_ possibly be it?

She hesitated, then, seeing the Oompa Loompas were now arguing amongst themselves, she decided to take the risk. She looked at the small boxes around the bowl, searching for the thing she was looking for, and when she found it, she reached over and grabbed a pinch of it, sprinkling it inside the bowl.

"Hey!" she heard one of the Oompa Loompas exclaim, and she jumped, making the little box tip over and the powder within it spread across the table. They were now all looking at her.

"Oh, I-I'm so sorry, I was just-" Charlene began, but before she could say anything, someone else joined their conversation.

"I see you've met my helpers," Willy said, looking at Charlene and then at the Oompa Loompas, who said nothing, "I got these poor guys stuck with this silly new recipe, they just can't figure out how to make the formula work! It's been days-" he suddenly stopped as his eyes rested on the bowl. "Oh-oh," thought Charlene, thinking she'd done something wrong, but as she followed Willy's gaze to look back at the liquid, her heart skipped a beat: the substance was now a definate, bubbling, cute…_pink_! The Oompa Loompas gasped and began talking quickly with each other in a language Charlene didn't understand.

"Well what do you know?" Willy finally said, "They've made it! They solved the problem!"

"Ahem," one of the Oompa Loompas cleared his throat, "Actually, Mr.Wonka, we didn't do anything."

"How is that possible?" he asked with a small laugh, "Who else would've-"

His sentece trailed off as he noticed the powder spread over the table. He looked at that, then at the trail it had left, and finally at Charlene's hand, covered by the same powder. He slowly began to understand, and then asked, bewildered, "You?" he looked at the little men, "_She_ did it?" The Oompa Loompas nodded, and he turned once again towards the girl, his mouth hanging open in astonishment. "My dear girl…How did you _do_ that?"

"I…read one of the copies of the formula," Charlene admitted, blushing slightly, "And one of the ingredients seemed wrong, so…I tried to fix it with another one."

"What was the wrong one?" Willy wanted to know.

"Peppermint," she answered simply.

"What?" he asked, confused.

"Yes, you put too much peppermint inside. It's a very strong ingredient, so it was reacting to the others too much and it was changing the mildness of the substance."

"And...what did you add?"

"Chamomile."

"_Chamomile?_" echoed Willy, incredulous.

"Yes," said Charlene with a slight shrug, "I just figured it would help, since it's so bland and pretty much harmless."

"My Goodness," commented Willy, staring into blank space and scratching his neck, "I wonder why I hadn't thought of that earlier! But…but you!" he focused once more on Charlene, "My dear, you're fantastic!" Charlene blushed at his compliment, as he continued enthusiastically, "Do you realize you've just solved a crucial problem that would've cost me a fortune?" He laughed, "I can hardly believe this! How on earth will I ever be able to thank –"

"Hey Mr.Wonka!" Violet suddenly called from the other end of the room.

Willy and Charlene turned and saw she was standing in front of a machine, along with all the other members of the group.

"Looks like they need me," said Willy, beginning to leave. Before he did, though, he blocked himself, apparently making a quick decision, and then went back to Charlene, stopping just in front of her.

"Charlene," he said, looking away as though he were searching for the words inside his head, "I…" he looked back at her, and then said simply, "Thank you."He gave her an honest, warm smile, and she felt a strange tingling sensation spread through her body. He then beckoned her to follow him, and they made their way to the other end of the room. The children were crowding around the strange-looking machinery with questioning expressions on their faces.

"What's this?" asked Violet, chewing noisly on her gum.

"This," answered Willy, "Is one of my newest machines. Here, let me show you what it does…"

And with that he reached over and pressed a large red button standing on a control panel besides the machine, which began to whirr and steam, as the sound of wheels turning and pieces snapping together came from inside it. After a few moments, a metal container was pushed outside of the machine with a mechanical arm, and from that a smaller container appeared, and from that came an even smaller one, and an even smaller one, and from that, out whirred…a piece of gum.

"That's _it?"___said Mike.

"Do you even know whatt _it_ is?" replied Willy, slightly irritated.

"It's gum," Violet supposed.

"Not just any old gum," specified Willy, "This here is the most revolutionary piece of gum in the entire world! Know why? Know why?" he asked the group eagerly. They shook their heads. "Because this gum," he explained, "Is a full three-course meal, all by itself!"

"You can't be serious!" said Charlene, amazed.

"Never been more serious in my life!" he answered.

"Why would anyone want that?" asked Mr.Salt.

This caught Willy off guard: he opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it again and hastily reached inside his jacket, pulling out the same stack of cards he'd read from to present himself earlier. Charlene stiffled a giggle as she saw him doing so.

With perfect publicitary voice, Willy read out loud, "It will be the end of all kitchens and cooking! One strip of Wonka's gum is all you'll ever need for breakfast,lunch and dinner! This gum happens to be tomato soup, roast beef, and bluberry pie."

"Sounds wonderful," commented Mrs.Beauregarde.

"It's awesome," said Veruca, flashing a dazzling smile at Willy.

"It's weird," said Mike.

"It's my kind of gum!" Violet exclaimed, suddenly snatching up the wad from the container and sticking her own piece of gum behind her ear.

"Ah, I wouldn't do that if I were you," Willy warned her, "Because I haven't gotten the formula quite right yet, so…"

"I'm the world champion of gum chewing," Violet snapped back at him, "And I'm not afraid of _anything_!" and with that, she popped the magical gum in her mouth and started chewing.

"How is it, honey?" asked her mother, apparently very satisfied with what her daughter had just done.

"It's amazing!" said Violet, her eyes wide, "Tomato soup! I can feel it running down my throat! It's creamy and delicious…"

"Yeah…spit it out," said Willy, with a nervous giggle.

"It's changing!" exclaimed the girl, ignoring him, "Now it's roast beef, with baked potato! It's so good!"

"Keep chewing, dear," her mother urged her, proudly adding, "My daughter is going to be first person ever to have a gum meal!"

"Yeah," said Willy, who was now standing besides her, "I'm just a bit concerned about the…"

"Blueberry pie!" said Violet.

"…that part," said Willy.

"It's so yummy!" the girl went on, "It's like I'm chewing it, fresh out of the oven, with vanilla ice cream and…"

"What's happening to her nose?" Veruca interrupted her.

Everybody's eyes went to Violet's nose: indeed, it seemed to be turning…

"Blue?" said Mrs.Beauregarde unceratinly, "Your…your nose is turning…blue? Violet…you're turning violet!"

The colour began to spread from the girl's nose all across her face, and withing seconds she was completely violet.

"M-mother?" she asked, her voice shaking, "What's happening?"

The group took a few steps back when they noticed the girl was actualy swelling up quickly, until she was the size of a huge, round ball. Of course, her colour made her look like a giant blueberry.

"It's terrible," Willy said to Mrs.Beauregarde, "I've tried it on like twenty Oompa Loompas, and they all swell up like a blueberry when they get to the pie!"

"But I can't have a blueberry as a daughter!" Mrs.Beauregarde protested, "How is she supposed to compete?"

"You could take her to the county fair," Veruca suggested maliciously, and Mrs.Beaureagarde shot her an evil glare. The four Oompa Loompas which Charlene had met a few minutes before appeared by Willy's side, and he told them to take Violet away. The little men began to roll the screaming girl across the room, towards the door.

"Where are they taking her?" asked Mrs.Beauregarde anxiously.

"To the juicing room," said Willy matter-of-factly.

"The _juicing _room?" she echoed, "What are they going to do to her there?"

"They're gonna squeeze her!" he said brightly, "Like a little pimple!" he laughed, but seeing the woman's distressed expression, he added, more serious, "We have to get all of that juice out of her...it's really the only way."

Without another word, Mrs.Beauregarde went off after her daughter, who was calling out for her from the boat outside the room.

"Well, we migt as well carry on," said Willy after a moment or two. He turned in the opposite direction from which they'd come, and found himself looking right at Charlene. Smiling broadly, he jerked his cane forward and exclaimed, "_Let's boogie!_"

And once again, off they went.


	11. Chapter 10: A Twist of Events

**A/N: Hey people! Your pal Kayla here, FINALLY back with the next chapter!! Ahem, as some of you know I've had a sort of block with this story, but it looks like I've finally solved it, plus I'm back from vacation, which means that you should be able to count on more frequent updates from now on. Thanks for the patience! And most of all, many many many thanks to all of my reviewers: I love you!! You make me proud of being a writer!! Oh, and for ****Yva J., ****there's a note a while back explaining why I cut Grandpa Joe out of the story, so you might want to read that…unfortunately it was a choice I had to make!**

**Other than that, before I leave you I want to let you guys know that I know perfectly well that this chapter is extremely short, but there's a reason why it is, and I promise the next one is going to be MUCH longer…so please don't hate me:P **

**Well, gotta go now, more Wonkaliscious fanfiction to write! Oh, speaking of which! (tosses Wonka bars to reviewers) these are for you, guys! As a thank you gift!**

**To our next update! Ciao!**

**Xoxox Kayla xoxo **

**Chapter 10** **– A TWIST OF EVENTS**

Off they went, once again making their way through the factory. They exited the Inventing Room through what Charlene supposed was a back door, and found themselves standing in a white corridor.

Willy guided them along different hallways, each one aligned with a vast number of round doors with their usual signs hanging above them. Charlene glimpsed at them as they walked by, wishing she could stop to visit the ones with the most interesting names. Willy, however, seemed to be heading determingly towards a precise room, and didn't give any sign of stopping or even slowing down.

The Chocolate River had disappeared from their view ever since the Oompa Loompas had taken Violet away on the pink boat, and Charlene began to realize just how big the factory really was. The rooms seemed to stretch on forever, and she wondered how long it had taken for Willy to memorize his way around the factory without getting lost. Each new hallway looked so similar to the previous, that she was sure _she_ would've had no trouble getting lost if it hadn't been for him.

"Now that the boat's gone, we'll have to move twice as fast just to keep up with the schedule," he was telling the group, who bustled to keep up with his quick pace.

Suddenly, Charlene came up with an question, "Mr.Wonka?"

"Huh?"

"Why did you decide to let people in after all these years?"

"Well, so they could see the factory, of course!"

"Yes, but why now? And why five?"

Before Willy could answer, though, Mike rudely cut in, "What's the special prize at the end?"

Charlene rolled her eyes at him, but thankfully Willy smartly aswered, "The best kind of prize is a SUR-prize!"

At this, Charlene laughed out loud, and he looked at her, smiling as well. The girl, who was walking alongside Willy, was just about to repeat her question, when she felt somebody shove her over, and the next moment, Veruca was standing in her place. Charlene frowned.

"Oh, Mr.Wonka," Veruca was saying, a false smiled plastered on her face, "Is Violet always going to be a blueberry?"

Willy, who seemed to feel uncomfortable having the girl so close to him all of a sudden, made a face and said uneasily, "Ah…Yes?...No, no…I-I don't know…but that's what you get from chewing gum all day, it's just disgusting!"

"Indeed!" agreed Veruca promptly, "And where are we going now?"

"You'll have to wait to find out," he answered briskly.

Moments later, they rounded a corner and came to a halt in front of a room that beared the sign "**THE NUT SORTING ROOM"**. Willy turned to face the group.

"Well, we're here," he began, "Now, we're-" but he cut himself off when he noticed someone missing, and frowning slightly he asked, "Hey, wait a second…where's Charlene?"

The poor girl was had been pushed and shoved at the end of the group after Veruca had taken her place, and was now hidden behind Mr.Salt and Mr.Teavee.

"Oh, there you are!" said Willy, spotting her.

The other guests moved in order for her to pass by.

When she'd walked back to the front of the line, slightly embarassed from the unexpected attention, Willy gave her a quick smile, then resumed his explanation, "So, as I was saying, this is the Nut Sorting Room. It's where I get all of the nuts I use for sweets out of their shells, ready to be used. I must ask you, before we enter, that you be very quiet, because the workers in there are-"

But just then, an Oompa Loompa came trotting down the corridor opposite them, and stepped up besides Willy, who crouched on his knees to listen to what he had to say. The little man seemed slightly anxious, and Willy nodded in understandment as he spoke.

"Oh…I see…all right then," he said, before getting back up. He crossed his arms across his chest as a thank-you sign, which the Oompa Loompa returned before heading back the way he came from and disappearing from view.

Willy turned once again to the winners, "Ah…it seems we can't enter the room, unfortunately. There's been a problem with the squirrels, and-"

"_Squirrels_?" echoes Veruca, her eyes glistening.

"Y-yeah," said Willy, staring at her, "The squirrels that do the nut sorting. It looks like they're having some problems, so it would be best if we just go ahead and skip this room. All the better, it means we'll have more time for the others! Well, off we go then!"

They resumed their walking, Veruca shooting one last glance in the Sorting room's direction, as though hoping Willy would change his mind and let them go inside, but instead he lead them round another corner, and the room was left behind.

"So where are we going to now?" Mr.Salt asked tentively.

"There's another room I'd like to show you," answered the chocolatier, "It's not too far from here, we'll be there in a couple of minutes."

They followed him along the maze of corridors, listening to him talk about the various other rooms of the factory as they passed them, Charlene itching with curiosity to see all of them with her own eyes. At one point, though, they saw Mike stop abruptly in his tracks, as though enchanted by something.

It took the group a couple of moments to notice this, and when they did, they all turned back.

"Mike?" his father called out, "Are you all right?"

The boy didn't answer, but merely raised his finger and pointed it at the sign hanging above the door. The others craned their necks to read it, but they were too far away and had to walk back to where he was.

"This room," Mike told Willy, "I want to go inside."

Willy didn't answer right away, but then shrugged, "Fine, I'll let you chose this time. You're lucky it's one of my favourite rooms," he added, rummaging in his coat and extracting a set of keys, then proceeding to look for the one he needed, "Or I would've walked right past it."

He found the key he was looking for and turned it inside the door, before pushing it open and announcing, "Ladies and Gentlemen…the Television Room."


	12. Chapter 11: The Television Room

**A/N : …well….it's sort of embarassing to come back after such a long wait, but…well, what can I say?...the inspiration to write this just sort of took over all of a sudden, and I hadn't even planned it! Just a quick but sincere thank you for everyone who reviewed, I'm sorry for the wait but I hope this will make it up to you! Hopefully I'll be back with more soon – I'm planning on taking a different road from the movie hereon, so it should be more interesting to write : let me tell you, writing down dialogue is BORIGNG! LOL... So anyways… enjoy everyone! ) thanks for reading, as always.**

**Love to all,**

**Xoxox**

**Your truly, back again,**

**Kayla Sparrow )**

**Chapter 11** **– THE TELEVISION ROOM**

Before anyone of the guests could catch a glimpse of what was inside the room, Willy hurried inside and blurtered out, "Quick, put these glasses on!"

They all watched him fish inside a container set up besides the door and extract a pair of white, round glasses, before quickly following his example and taking a pair each. As soon as everyone was set, Willy turned to them.

"I'm sorry for the rush, but you must know the light inside this room is so powerful it could burn your eyes right out of their sockets if you don't protect them," he explained quite frankly, "And we certainly wouldn't want that to happen now, would we?"

Charlene nervously shook her head, checking to see her glasses were safely in place. Now that she had them on, she was able to look around: the room was nothing more than a big, round oval, entirely painted white, with strange-looking machinery occupying the sides and a round platform set up in the middle of the room.

Willy motioned the group to follow him, and they ventured forward.

"This," the chocolatier began, as they followed a platform circling the room, "Is the testing room for my latest and greates invention: Television Chocolate. One day it occurred to me: hey, if television can break up a photograph into millions and millions of tiny little pieces and send them whizzing through the air, and reassemble them on the other end, why can't I do the same thing with chocolate? Why can't I send a real bar of chocolate through television already to be eaten?"

"Why not?" asked Charlene.

"Exactly!" he replied.

Charlene felt slightly confused, but decided to wait and see what would happen next. They stopped in front of an Oompa Loompa who was sitting on a round couch, busily flipping through the channels of a tv set.

"Sounds….interesting," said Mr.Salt, unsure of which words to use to describe Willy's bizzare idea.

"Impossible is more like it," replied Mr.Teavee.

"That's because it _is_ impossible!" excalimed Mike suddenly. Willy looked at him, and he continued, "You don't understand anything about science." Willy began moving over to the other side of the room, and the others followed as Mike carried on, "First off, there's a difference between waves and particles….duh! Second, the amount of power it would take to convert energy in matter would be like nine atomic bombs!"

"Mumbler!" Willy burst out, losing his temper. Mike shut up. "Seriously, I cannot understand a single word you're saying!" There was an uncomfortable silence for a couple of moments, before Willy changed tone and went back to his explanation, "Okey dokey. I shall now send a bar of chocolate from one end of the room to the other by television!" He smiled enthusiastically when he noticed Charlene's curious expression, then shouted towards the Oompa Loompas, "Bring in the chocolate!"

Moments later, the little men appeared carrying an enormous bar of chocolate, heading towards the platform at the centre of the room. The group watched in a respectfu silence.

"It's gotta be real big, 'cause you know how TV you can film a regular-sized man and he comes out looking this tall?" he demonstrated with his hands, mimicking a small figure, then shrugged nonchalantly, "Same basic principle!"

The Oompa Loompas had set the chocolate, and Willy pressed a large red button. The machineries began to hum and rumble, and the bar was lifted up as a glass tube descended to cover the platform. Then, with a flash, it was gone. Charlene and Veruca gasped in surprise.

"It's gone!" exclaimed Chalene.

"Well, I told you!" replied Willy, "That bar is now whizzing above our heads in a million tiny little pieces." He paused for effect, then ordered, "Come over here! Come on!" and swiftly rushed back in front of the TV on the other end of the room. The group eagerly gathered around and watched the screen. For a moment, nothing happened, but then-

"Here it comes…!" announced Willy.

Indeed, moments later they were all surprised to see the same bar of chocolate – now considerably smaller – appear right inside the program. Willy nudged Mike.

"Take it!"

Mike raised an eyebrow, "It's just a picture on a screen."

Willy made a tut-tutting sound, "Scaredy cat." He looked at Charlene, "You take it."

Charlene hesitated. She couldn't quite bring herself to believe she could actually reach inside a television screen and take out a bar of chocolate.

"Go on," he encouraged her, "Just reach out and grab it!"

The girl decided to give it a try, and slowly extended her hand towards the screen. She was shocked when she felt it simply melt away through her fingers, and even more shocked when she felt the bar solidly inside her grip. She quickly retrieved it, afraid something strange might happen to her hand.

"Eat it!" said Willy, "Go on, it'll be delicious! It's the same bar, it's just gotten a little smaller on the journey , that's all," he reassured her.

Charlene gave a small shrug and opened the wrapping paper, taking a bite of the chocolate. The taste was, as Willy had predicted, quite delicious.

"It's great," she said, smiling at him.

Willy smiled back, then went besides the couch on which the Oompa Loompa was seatead.

"So imagine," he said, "You're at home watching television, and all of a sudden, a commercial comes on and a voice will say: "WONKA'S CHOCOLATES ARE THE BEST IN THE WORLD! IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE US…TRY ONE YOURSELF!" then you simply reach out…and you take it!"

"Sounds brilliant!" said Mr.Salt.

"But could you send other things if you wanted to?" asked Chalene.

"Of course you could," Willy answered.

"What about people?" asked Mike.

"Well why would I want to send people?" said Willy, confused, "They don't taste very good."

"Don't you _realize_ what you've invented?" exclaimed Mike, losing his temper once again, "It's a telporter! The most imporant invention in the history of the world! And all _you _think about is chocolate!"

"Calm down, Mike! I think Mr.Wonka knows what he's talking about," said Mr.Teavee.

"No he _doesn't_!" Mike snapped back, "He has no idea! You think he's a genius, but he's an idiot!"

"Hey!" Charlene said, scowling at him, "That's not very nice!"

Willy looked at her, surprised she'd suddenly spoken up in his defence. Mike merely smirked.

"Well, _I'm _no idiot!"

An before anyone could stop him, he sprinted towards the machinery, shoving away the Oompa Loompas. Willy timidly raised his hand, "Hey little boy?" when he saw Mike didn't even bother to glance at him, he warned a little more tensley, "Don't touch my button!"

But it was all to no avail: with a jump, Mike pressed the red button, setting off the mechanism, then landed onto the platfrom. The guests watched helpessly as he was raised in the air and closed inside the glass tube, a triumphant look upon his face.

And a second later, there was a bright flash: they looked away, and when they looked back…he was gone.


	13. Chapter 12: Back In The Chocolate Room

**A/N: HI EVERYONE ! I'M BACK ! AND I HAVE A NEW CHAPTER FOR ALL OF YOU! D I WAS SO PLEASED TO RECEIVE SO MANY WONDERFUL REVIEWS THAT I FELT INSPIRED TO CONTINUE THIS STORY RIGHT AWAY. I'M SURE YOU'RE ALL GOING TO ENJOY THIS CHAPTER, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR KIND WORDS. I APPRECIATE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU FOR TAKING YOUR TIME TO READ THE STORY AND LEAVE A COMMENT.**

**THIS CHAPTER IS, AS ALWAYS, DEDICATED TO ALL OF YOU READERS ! **

**I HOPE TO POST THE NEXT ONE SOON, BUT JUDGING BY THE STORYLINE THAT SHOULDN'T BE TOO DIFFICULT NOW ;) WELL, ENOUGH SAID, HERE'S THE STORY! ENJOY!**

**LOVE TO ALL!**

**XOXO**

**KAYLA**

**Chapter 12** **– BACK TO THE CHOCOLATE ROOM**

They group remained frozen for a couple of moments, not sure of what to do. Then, Mr.Teavee took a few hesitant steps towards the platform, looking around as though he was expecting to see his son pop back out of nowhere.

"He's gone!" he exclaimed when he saw that didn't happen.

"Well," said Willy, "Let's go check the television and see what we get, shall we?"

They all turned and walked back gingerly in front of the TV set, gathering around the screen.

"I sure hope no part of him gets left behind…" Willy said cautiously almost to himself.

"What do you _mean_?" asked Mr.Teavee in horror.

"Well," answered Willy uneasily, "Sometimes only half of the little pieces find their way through." There was an uncomfortable silence. "If you had to chose only one half of your son, which half would it be?" the chocolatier asked merrily to try and break the rising tension.

Mr.Teavee stared at him as though he'd just seen a ghost, "What kind of a question is _that_?"

Willy's tentative smile faded, "No need to snap," he said quietly, "It was just a question." He turned his attention to the Oompa Loompa sitting on the couch, and half-whispered, "Try every channel, I'm starting to feel a little anxious."

As Willy had ordered, the little man began scanning through the channels quickly. At last, they found a news channel and saw the minimized figure of Mike hopping up and down on the anchorman's desk. Before anybody could move, though, the anchorman, who apparently hadn't seen the little boy, smashed him with his papers, before leaving his position.

"Ew!" Willy commented, retrieving his hand backwards, "Somebody grab him!"

Mr.Teavee reached inside the television without a moment's hesitation, and pulled out what was now an action-figure sized Mike. His father looked at him with horror.

"Oh…thank heavens, he's completely unharmed," muttered Willy, slightly disgusted.

Charlene had to repress a chuckle in seeing his expression, but fortunately Willy was the only one who noticed it and quickly flashed her a half-smile.

"_Unharmed?"_ repeated Mr.Teavee, "What are you _talking _about?"

"Just put me back in the other way!" squeaked the miniature Mike in a tiny voice.

"There _is_ no other way," replied Willy, a hint of satisfaction in his voice as he carried on, "It's tele_vision,_ not tele_phone_…there's quite a difference."

"And what exactly do you propose to do about it, then?" asked Mr.Teavee, evidently about to lose his temper.

Willy thought about it, ignoring the man's growing anger, before frankly answering, "I don't know." He paused for a moment, "But you know, young men are extremely stringy. He'll stretch like mad-" he broke off in midsentence as an idea occurred to him, "I know! Let's go put him in the taffy puller!"

Mr.Teavee couldn't believe his ears, "_Taffy puller?!_"

"Hey!" Willy snapped, "That was my idea!"

Once again, Charlene had to hold back the urge to giggle, but this time she was less succesfull and ended up making a snorting sound. Willy glanced at her once again and raised an eyebrow: he really enjoyed the way she seemed to understand everything he was thinking. It felt as though they had some sort of strange connection.

He returned his attenion to the miniature boy, and commented, "Boy…is he gonna be skinny. Oh, yes...the taffy puller." Then, as though he'd made up his mind, he addressed the Oompa Loompa on the couch, "I want you to take Mr.Teavee and his little boy up to the taffy puller….kay? Stretch him out."

The Oompa Loompa got up and bowed at Willy, before beckoning Mr.Teavee to follow him. Mr.Teavee did, sending one last fired look at Willy before following the little man out of the room. Willy took a deep breath and then announced, "On with the tour." He lead the way back to the entrance of the room.

"So, how many are left?" he asked, stopping in front of the door.

He turner around and saw Charlene, Veruca and Mr.Salt standing behind him. He examined them, nodding to himself slightly, as though considering what to do now.

"I see," he said, pausing just a moment longer before annoucing, "All right then, follow me!"

He placed his glasses back inside the container as he left through the door. Mr.Salt went out right after him. For a split second, Charlene felt Veruca staring fiercely at her, but a moment later they followed Willy's action and stepped outside as well.

As they followed Willy down the contorted hallways, Charlene felt a slight sense of uneasiness settling in: everyone of the other contestants had left the group after provoking some sort of "accident", and now it was just her and Veruca. For some reason, she started to believe this wasn't going to end until one of them made a wrong move – and she hoped with all her heart that wasn't going to be her. This was no doubt a competition, and for the simple fact that Veruca had proven to be such a nasty, spoiled girl, Charlene prayed she wouldn't lose against her.

"So how do you like the factory so far?"

Charlene jumped slightly: she had been so caught up in her thoughts, that she hadn't noticed Willy had been walking right besides her. Veruca and Mr.Salt were a few steps back, apparently discussing animatedly about something.

"I love it," she answered honestly.

"You do?"

"Yes," she replied, looking at him straight in the eye.

"Well, I'm glad," he said, nodding.

"Everything is so amazing. It makes me feel sad…"

"Why?"

Charlene looked at him, surprised, "Well, because I'll have to leave so soon," she sigh, glancing at all the doors they were passing, "I would love to be able to stay here and explore each and every single one of these rooms."

"Really?"

"Of course!" she replied, a dreamy expression on her face. She bit her lip, unsure whether or not to say what she was thinking, but then deciding to go ahead and go for it, "You know, Mr.Wonka…today is a dream come true, for me."

"Is it?" he asked, honestly curious.

She nodded, "I've always wanted to be able to visit this factory, especially since I got my job at Lollipops and Sugar. It's a candy store," she explained, "So you see…working constantly with candies and sweets made me fall in love with them. I might not have received much from life, but I have always been grateful for having a job I love so much. You know, I've always dreamt about being able to open my own little candy shop-" she stopped.

Why had she just told him that? That didn't have to do with what she wanted to say. "_Probably because he's being so nice with me,_" she thought, "_Oh no, I hope he doesn't think I'm a silly girl with an ever sillier dream now…" _But she shook the thought away and quickly tried to resume her speech as though nothing strange had happened, but she couldn't help noticing the change in Willy's expression, especially after he'd heard her last phrase.

Nevertheless, she resumed, "Anyway, being able to enter the factory has been such an incredible luck for me, I honestly couldn't ask for anything better than this!"

"_Oh no,_" she thought, biting her tongue, _"This is going from bad to worse! I-" _

Her train of thoughts was interrupted when she caught sight of Willy's eyes: they were fixed upon her intently, but what made her blush was the way he was looking at her. In his eyes, she saw reflected a sudden kindness and sympathy that gave her a fluttering sensation in her stomach.

"Well, then I'm glad I could be of help to you, my dear girl."

These words only made the fluttering in Charlene's stomach grow, and she felt felt her cheeks redden. There was a slightly akward silence, but she promptly broke it before uneasiness could settle in between them, since she was enjoying their conversation so much.

"I have to say though, I never could've thought the factory could be so big!"

"Yes, well, it really is pretty big," Willy agreed.

"Must get awfully lonely living here all by yourself," the words were out of Charlene's mouth before she could realize she'd spoken her thoughts out loud.

Willy was taken aback by her statement…especially because it was extremely true.

Charlene felt awfully embarassed, and immediately started apologizing, "Oh no…I am so sorry, Mr.Wonka, I didn't mean to-"

"No, no, don't be," he reassured her, "It's all right, really." He looked sincere, which made Charlene feel relieved.

But just as she opened her mouth to speak, her heart skipped a beat when she heard heard him mutter in barely more than a whisper, "Yes, it does."

She didn't know what to say, but luckily for her a split second later they rounded a corner and found themselves in front of an arch that lead right into the Chocolate Room. Willy gave her one last meaningful glance, before turning his attention to Veruca and Mr.Salt, who had caught up with them.

"All right," he began, "As you can see, we're back in the Chocolate Room. The reason I brought you here is because I want to take you to visit another room that's only accesible by river, so we'll have to take another boat ride, okay? Follow me," he said, leading the way across the bright green meadow towards the Chocolate River.

Charlene gulped at the thought of having to face the waterfall again, but decided not to say anything, especially after the conversation she'd just had with Willy. Instead, she followed him as he rounded up to the river back, following the path that coasted the river and walking a few steps ahead of her and the Salts.

She noticed he was frowning slightly, deeply immerged in his own thoughts, and with a jolt of panic she wondered if her comment _had _affected him after all. She decided to go ahead and apologie once again. She breathed deeply and took a step forward, stretching out her hand to tap him on the shoulder and opening her mouth to call out his name – and that's when it happened.

Suddenly, she felt something shove her in the side, and a moment later she felt as though the ground had been pulled away from under her feet. As she fell, she was barely able to catch a glimpse of Willy, turning around and gasping when he saw her, before she heard a dull squishing sound and a moment later saw everything around her disappeared in a sea of darkness, as she splashed right into the River.

Panic took over her, for she had never learned to swim properly in water, let alone in a sea of chocolate. She began to struggle and toss around frantically, feeling the thick liquid entering her lungs and cutting out her oxygen, and her heartbeat quickened as her panic continued to build. She was going to drown! She began to feel her senses leaving her as she kept on struggling, unable to find her way to the surface, losing all sense of direction, praying for something to save her…suddenly, she heard what seemed like a distant, muffled thud, and a split second later she felt a pair of strong arms encircling her waist and pull her determingly yet gently upwards. Moments later a huge wave of relief washed over her as she broke the river's surface and gasped in a lungful of air. Still too dazed to react, she remained limp, and felt hersef being dragged out of the chocolate and onto the soft grass. Her head was spinning madly, but she tried to calm herself down by taking big breaths.

Meanwhile, she sensed people shuffing hurriedly around her.

"Quick, get me a towel! Move, move! Let her breathe!"

For one terrible instant, she thought she'd become blind, but right after she realied her eyes were merely covered in chocolate. She felt somebody gently lift her chin up, and then she felt a hot towel being passed over her eyes. Finally, she was able to open them: her hearbeat, that had slowly begun to go back to normal, started racing again when she saw she was face to face with none other than Willy, who was covered in chocolate just as much as her. His cane, hat and coat were laying in a crumpled mess not far away, as though they'd been tossed there abruptly.

"Are you okay?" he asked her, concern filling his eyes as he examined her face worriedly.

She nodded, "Yes, yes…I'm all right."

He nodded once, then his worried expression turned into an angry one as he turned his head towards Veruca and Mr.Salt, who were standing to the side in silence. Mr.Salt seemed just as shocked as Willy, but Veruca's eyes were narrowed and she looked merely disappointed.

"This is unbelievable!" Willy exclaimed angrily, "Throwing her into the river! Do you realize she could've drowned? You ought to be ashamed of yourself, you mean girl! I knew you were no good from the moment I met you! You're nothing but a spoiled brat, and you don't deserve to be here!" Without waiting for her to reply, he addressed a nearby Oompa Loompa, "Please escort Mr.Salt and his daughter to the entrance immediately!"

"But-" Veruca began.

Willy was about to snap back at her, but suprisingly, this time it was Mr.Salt that spoke up, "Veruca, not another word from you! I'm ashamed of you, your behaviour has been dispecable!" he then turned directly to Willy, "Mr.Wonka, I am so terribly sorry, I-"

"It's not me you should apologize to," Willy cut him off acidly.

"Right," said Mr.Salt after a moment's silence, turning his attention to Charlene, "Young lady, I beg you to forgive my daugter's action, I am truly mortified of this accident."

"It's all right," she replied.

Mr.Salt nodded, then icily glared at his daughter, "Veruca…apologize."

"_What?_" she retorted, as though the mere idea were preposterous.

"Veruca!"

She huffed and rolled her eyes, eyeing Charlene as though this were the last thing on earth she wanted to do. Crossing her arms across her chest, she muttered, "Sorry," before glancing one last time at Willy and swiftly turning on her heels to follow the Oompa Loompa outside, marching off while keeping her chin determingly lifted upwards as though they were the ones missing out on a big occasion. Mr.Salt sigh heavily, shaking his head.

"Thank you for the tour, Mr.Wonka. You have a wonderful factory." he said, before beckoning Charlene once more and then following his daughter.

A few moments later, Charlene realized she and Willy were now alone, and her heartbeat quickened again. Willy shook his head, and then seemed to decide to forget about Veruca, returning his attention to her.

"Well then," he said, "I guess we've got to get you cleaned up now. Allow me."

Charlene didn't understand what he meant, but before she could realize what was happening she felt herself being lifted up by him. Taken by surprise, she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, slighlty startled. He stiffened up for a moment, and she felt her heart sink, but a split second later she saw him relax once again and, to her surpise, he gave her a sweet smile to show he didn't mind. And so, she returned the smile and allowed him to carry her away, waiting to see where they would end up.


	14. Chapter 13: The Best Kind of Prize

**Author's Note: **Hello everybody ! As you can see, I'm back with the next chapter :) it took me a while to post it because initially I continued the story with another chapter, but then changed my mind and wrote this one instead, so…here it is! I'd like to say a big 'thank you' to all of my reviewers: **E.J****.**, **magz88** (hehe,I know,nice mental image isn't it? LOL.), **Lysi Marie** (your comment made me blush!), **minorly-crazy** (it's great to know you changed your mind mate!), **AngelWithHorns222** (LOL, I know, isn't he a sweetheart for doing so? As for the kissing…I promise you I'll make it worth the wait ;P), **x.Shadowz Arrow.****x** (yep, lit'l girl IS a spoiled brat… XD) , **julie** (echanges virtual high 5! thanks!), **keymasters** (oh yeah, it IS starting to show… you'll see!), **EnchantingBeautifulHypocrit...**, **GDgirl1993**, **panthergirl101**, **Tbooki** (yup…alone at last!), **almightyswot**(takes chocie hey, thanks for that! And yes, Willy's a hero all right! And what a hero he is!), **shariena**, **Samira Granger** (LOL. Wonka the Knight. Gotta Love that XD), **Phantom's Ange** (nice little scene, eh? Adds some drama ;P), **dreamer 3097**, **iic****eangel3.o** (you can say that again!!LOL! as a matter of fact, I'd also go ahead and add IT'S ABOUT TIME! :D), and **princess moon shadow**. I want you all to know that I appreciate everyone of your comments very much, so thank you for leaving them.  
I hope you'll continue enjoying the story. And now…on with the next chapter!  
Special thanks to **Mrs.DeppQueenObsessorGoddess, my Beta! :D  
Lots of love and candy to all!  
xoxox  
Kayla**

* * *

**Chapter 13** **– THE BEST KIND OF PRIZE**

A while later, Willy was pacing back and forth in front of a closed door. Behind it, Charlene was currently getting cleaned up. After having escorted her to the room that was once used as a changing room by the women who worked in his factory, he'd left her in the hands of a couple of women Oompa Loompas and had gone to change himself.

He had come back shortly after, all freshened up and cleaned. He was now wearing a purple shirt and a pair of pants and matching coat that were dyed a shade darker. His hat was balanced on top of his head, and he was holding his cane behind his back, entwined between his fingers.

"_What's taking her so long?_" he wondered impatiently.

He didn't understand why he was feeling so anxious, but ever since the last contestants had left, he had started to feel as though he'd swallowed a fistful of Gobstoppers, and nothing he did seemed to calm him down. He assumed it just _had_ to do with Charlene's presence. After all, she was a…well, a girl.

"_And a very pretty one, for that matter."_

Willy stopped in his own tracks.

Had he really just thought that?

He resumed his pacing, shaking his head.

Well, of course, she also loved sweets and chocolate.

That was good.

And she was really nice to him.

That was even better.

So why was he feeling so nervous?  "_Wilbur Wonka_," he scolded himself, "_You are going to calm down this very instant, do you understand me? You are a Chocolate Genius, for crying out loud! Why on earth should you-"_

His train of thought was interrupted when he heard the door finally open behind him. He turned around, and felt his stomach twitch in a funny way when his gaze set upon the figure before him.

Charlene was wearing a short, deep-red dress that the Oompa Loompas had conjured up almost magically when Willy had ordered a change of clothes for the girl, and her hair was partly pulled back, with a few loose curls framing her face. She shyly stood with her hands together, blushing and looking down when she saw Willy staring at her that way.

It took him a moment to realize he was wearing an extremely silly awe-struck expression, his mouth forming an odd sideways smile. He quickly shook himself back to reality and cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure.

"You…you look lovely, Charlene," he said, taking a few steps towards her.

"Thank you, Mr.Wonka," she answered, feeling pleased by his compliment.

She really appreciated his help, and found that the new dress the Oompa Loompas had given her was lovely. She wanted to thank him, but felt too awkward to do so.

"Uhm, Charlene?" he asked.

She raised her head to look at him, and only then did she notice he had changed too. She found the darker colors suited him very much, and when she made eye contact with him she felt that feeling in her stomach again. She was slowly starting to realize that, even though she'd known him for such a sort time, she actually liked him, and not just for the wonderful Chocolatier he was. Truth be told, she admittedly thought he looked quite handsome.

"Yes?"

"Ah, listen, I…I realize it's getting late, but I was wondering if…if you'd like to take a walk with me, please?" he took a step closer to her, "I have something very important to tell you."

"Oh…of course, Mr.Wonka."

"Wonderful," he said, with a small smile, starting to walk away.

He stopped, hesitating for a second, then went back on his tracks in front of Charlene.

"Ah…may I?" he asked, galantly offering her his arm.

Charlene was taken aback by his kind gesture. She raised her hand and gently placed it on top of his arm, and they exchanged a quick glance before he began to lead the way.

Shortly after, they were back inside the Chocolate Room. Willy brought them to a corner of the candy garden, besides a large chocolate tree whos branches were filled with ruby red apples, and sat down under it. Charlene followed him, elegantly sitting with her legs crossed and waiting for him to speak.

"Charlene," he began, looking at the distant waterfall, "There's a reason why I hosted this contest." He paused, taking a deep breath and leaning back on the soft grass, "You see, not so long ago I was getting my semi-annual haircut, and suddenly my eye caught something that made me freeze in shock. It was a-" He hestitated, frowning and lowering his eyes to the ground, evidently embarassed, "A single gray hair."

Charlene had to stiffle a giggle: for a moment, she'd feared it was something horrible! The Chocolatier carried on with his story, "In that one hair, I saw reflected my life's work Who was going to take care of the factory once I was gone? Who was going to take care of my beloved Oompa Loompas? And that's when I realized: I needed to find a heir. And I did, Charlene," He stopped and shifted his eyes to look at Charlene for the first time, and then paused, gazing at the girl, before saying softly,"You."

For a moment, Charlene was sure she'd misunderstood. He couldn't _possibly _have said what he'd just said…right?

"I beg your pardon?" she asked, shaking her head in confusion.

Willy nodded, "Yes, you heard me correctly. After I made this decision, I came up with the idea for the Golden Tickets. I decided I'd give five winners a chance to visit my factory,and whoever prooved to be worthy enough would be nominated as my heir. Don't you see?" he continued, turning over on his knees while still looking at Charlene, "All those other kids…they were just a bunch of spoiled, rotten brats who I'd never, _ever_ even take in consideration for such a big issue. But you," he suddenly took hold of her hand, making her stomach twitch, "I knew you were different, right from the beginning. I had a hunch you'd be the one to make it all the way, and I was right!"

"But…but wait…what…what does this mean?" she was still too shocked to fully understand what he was telling her.

Understanding her state of confusion, he smiled broadly, and then announced, "My dear girl, it means you've won!"

Charlene was specchless. She stared blankly at him, awestruck.

She'd _won_?

She'd won a _Chocolate Factory?_

And…not just ANY old factory…she'd won _Willy Wonka's _Chocolate Factory?

Mesmerized, she rose to her feet, her attention turning to the beauty surrounding her: as he eyes slowly took in the view of the room, her heatbeat grew steadily faster. Ever so slowly, the realization of what she'd just been told started to sink in. Everything she'd ever dreamed of…was coming true.

In her mind, she thought about her job. About every time she dreamt about opening her own little candy shop. About the difficut times her family had been going through.

And now, this.

Willy stood silently behind her, watching her reaction and smiling to himself.

Then, as the commotion of it all overwhelmed her, without entirely realizing what she was doing Charlene let out a cry of joy, spun around, and threw her arms around the Chocolatier. She felt him freeze for a moment, and knew he wasn't expecting her to do that, but she was far too thrilled to feel embarassed.

"I can't believe it!" she laughed, "This is the most wonderful thing that's ever happened to me! Mr.Wonka," she continued, letting go of him, still grinning, "I…I just don't know what to say."

"Well," he answered, trying to keep himself from blushing from the sudden physical contact, "Just…say you accept my offer."

She nodded, unable to stop smiling. Then, she seemed to realize something, and gasped.

"What's the matter?" Willy asked.

"My family!" she answered, "What about them? I've got to let them know all about this! I better run home, I can't wait to tell-"

"Run home?" Willy echoed, frowning slightly, "My dear girl, you don't really mean that, do you? Do you truly think I'd let you _run_ home?"

"Well, I don't see how else I-"

Willy shook his head, "Come with me," he said, "Lucky for us, I've got a much quicker way of transportation. Come on!"

He took hold of her hand once again and raced them across the room. Charlene followed him suit, wondering what sort of transportation he was talking about.


	15. Chapter 14: Homeward Bound

**A/N: ** _Well folks, as you can see I'm back, and pretty soon for that matter. I'm happy to say this story seems to be coming along nicely,and I hope it'll continue doing so. A big thank you, as always,to my reviewers: _**No One Mourns The Wicked****, ****dreamer 3097****, ****iiceangel3.o****, ****minorly-crazy****, ****AngelWithHorns222****, **and**princess moon shadow****. **_Free Gobstoppers for you all!- __**tosses Gobstoppers to beloved reviewers-**_

_Keep reading and I promise you won't be disappointed ! As usual, feel free to leave any comment, all reviews welcome!_

_Lots of love, and to our next update!  
yours truly,_

_-Kayla_

**Chapter 14** **– HOMEWARD BOUND**

"Here we are!"

Willy came to a halt and turned to Charlene, proudly indicating what looked like a normal elevator. Charlene examined it: the only visible difference from any ordinary elevator seemed to be that it was made of glass. She looked at Willy with a puzzled expression.

"This, my dear," he said, as though he'd read her mind, "Is my wondrous Glass Elevator. It'll get us to your house in no time!" And with that, he pressed the opening button.

With a ding, the glass doors smoothly slid open, and the Chocolatier stepped inside. He turned to Charlene, "Well? Aren't you coming?"

Charlene was in fact standing still, looking at the elevator with a frowning and doubting expression.

"Uhm," she said uneasily, "Mr.Wonka…What do you mean, this will get us to my house in no time?"

"Well, it'll fly us there of course, " he answered matter-of-factly, as though it were perfectly normal for people to fly around in glass elevators.

"E-excuse me?" Charlene asked, sure she'd misunderstood, "It will _fly_ us there?"

"Yeah," he answered simply, nodding his head, grinning excitedly, "Isn't that neat?"

"But…but I…no, I can't do it," Charlene suddenly objected, taking a step back from the glass doors.

"What?"

"No, no, I…I just can't."

"What do you mean, you can't?"

"Mr.Wonka, I'm…I'm too scared," she confessed, feeling embarassed and looking away.

"Oh," he said, suddenly remembering her reaction when they'd gone down the Chocolate rapids earlier on, during the tour, "But, Charlene….there's nothing to be afraid of."

She looked back at him, perplexed, "There isn't?"

He shook his head, "Of course not! My dear girl, I promise you, nothing's going to happen. I can guarantee you this elevator is one of the safest means of transportation you could ever count on. And besides," he gave her a reassuring smile, "I'm going to be right here besides you. And I promise that if you get too scared, I'll get us back on the ground in no time. So what do you say?" He asked, reaching out with his hand, "Do you trust me?"

Charlene hesitated. She actually _did_ trust Willy, of course. After all, if he said it was safe…well, it _had_ to be, right? He'd never take any chances, that was certain. But the idea of floating above the ground on a transparent piece of glass was frightening nonetheless.

As her doubts circled inside her head, she lifted her eyes, and her stare met Willy's. He seemed so sincere, and was looking at her with such a calm and reasurring gaze, that for a moment she found herself completely hypnotized. He simply stood there, patiently holding out his hand for her to take. Suddenly, she felt an unknown courage take over her, and her hand reached Willy's.

As soon as their hands touched, he gave her another encouraging smile, and she bravely stepped inside the elevator. All of a sudden, as she stood there looking into his eyes and holding his hand, she felt a warm sense of security spread inside her.

His smile widened, and he then turned around to face one of the sides of the elevator, entirely covered with buttons that apparently led to the different rooms of the Factory, pushing the one that read, "Up and Out". Charlene felt the elevator move, and gulped. Willy's attention was immediately drawn back to her. He gave her hand a small squeeze, and she managed to give him a smile.

The elevator slowly began to rise upward, and Charlene felt her heartbeat quicken. Instinctively, she made to look down, but Willy gently scolded her.

"Uh-uh," he said, lifting her chin up with a gloved hand,"No looking down."

Charlene's head snapped back up, and she nodded at him. She tried to forget about where she was, but wasn't entirely able to do so. After all, she noticed, they were now picking up speed, and it was almost impossible not to think about where they were. Willy looked up for a moment, as though he was checking something, and grinned to himself, before looking back at her.

"All right, Charlene," he explained, making sure he kept his tone calm, "Now, here's what we're going to do: we're going to exit through the roof, and then we're going to activate the elevator's motors and fly towards your house, 'kay?"

"Through the roof?" Charlene repeated with a slightly quivering voice, shooting a worried glance upwards.

They kept zooming up, increasing their speed as they went, and Charlene felt the adrenaline pulsing through her veins. She was thankful Willy was sill holding her hand, and was quite surprised when, seeing her worried look, he gently took hold of her other as well.

She looked at their hands, then at him, and couldn't help but feel a different kind of adrenaline when she saw his everreassuring face staring back at her. Suddenly, though, the elevator began to rush upwards with a much quicker pace, and Charene felt her fear take over once more. She closed her eyes, and unconsciuosly cringed forwards. She felt her head hit something soft, and realized she was leaning on Willy.

Seeing her distress, Willy smiled to himself, and instead of feeling embarassed by their physical contact - to which, he realized, he was getting used to quite quickly - without fully realizing what he was doing he let go of one of her hands and brought it up to her head, gently cupping her neck and holding her to him. Charlene was surpised by his action, but was immensely grateful for it, for once again she felt safe and secure. She leaned a bit further in and stood still. As she inhaled, she noticed he had a strange fragrance…what was that?...she quickly realized what it was: peanuts. He vaguely smelled of peanuts. She couldn't help but grin in his shoulder when she realized it.

Suddenly, she heard a spine-chilling crash, and the elevator shook as they broke through the roof, but it lasted for just a moment: right after, in fact, she felt them drop a few feet before the elevator's motors went off, and they hovered on the spot.

Willy pulled his head back slightly, lowering his eyes to check the girl's state.

"How are you doing?"

Charlene took one last breath in his embrace, then lifted her head as well, nodding, "I'm fine." She then hastily pulled away from him, not wanting to cause embarassment, "Thank you, Mr.Wonka."

He smiled, "Don't mention it. Are you ok now?"

"Yes, I think I am."

"Good," he nodded, "So, why don't you tell me where you live?"

Charlene looked around and was awed by the breathtaking view surrounding them. Keeping her eyes determingly from looking down, she peered around the city, and immediately recognized the tattered silhouette of her home. She pointed in its direction.

"There, that's it," she said, "That's my house."

Willy nodded, and turned around to press another button. They began to glide on the air, directed towards Charlene's home. As they zipped through the white clouds, Charlene began to gain more confidence, and she stood still besides Willy, as they both directed their gazes towards their destination in silence. As they approached the house, they glanced at each other and smiled. Charlene noticed he was till holding her hands, and somehow didn't even consider letting go. Just as they looked at each other once again, she felt them start their descent, and she shut her eyes for a second, startled by the sudden change of direction. She heard Willy chuckle, and she opened her eyes again, shooting him a sarcastic glance. A split second later, there came a loud crash, and the girl realized they had just landed straight inside the living room. As the roof collapsed around them, she heard her parents's and grandparents's surprised cries. The girl's mouth hung open in shock, and she couldn't help but give Willy a repremanding look, as if to say, "Did we _really_ have to do that?" He responded with a childishly shy grin, hunching in his shoulders.

"I think there's someone at the door!"

Grandma Georgina's concerned exclamation was all it took to break the moment of slight tension and make the two of them burst into a fit of giggles.


	16. Chap 15:The Way Things Got Much Better

**A/N: ****My salutations to all of you, **my beloved Wonka-lovers! I've got a brand new chapter all written out and ready to go for you! It took me a while, because I wanted to make sure it was extra-long, as a way of thanking all of you for your reviews! My goodness, 202 reviews! I almost can't believe it! When I first started this story I never would've thought it would become so loved…and I really have to thank you for reading it and for leaving me your encouraging thoughts. Thank you, to smallncrazy91 (_I love Grandma G. too!isn't she utterly adorable?_) minorly-crazy (g_lad you enjoyed the gobstoppers,LOL!_), AngelWithHorns222 (_yeah,that would probably be my reaction as well!hehe!_), princess moon shadow, dreamer 3097, almightyswot, Phantom's Ange, Lady Rikkunen, No One Mourns the Wicked (_yes,I know,I've always wanted to find a way to make Willy get over his 'physical contact issue' ASAP, and it's good to hear I've done a good job with that!;D_), Queen Sereya, KirinFang_(-fetches cookie- thanks!I love cookies!_), MusicalLife17, sexypancake (_thank YOU for reading my fic!_), Dickens's Favorite (_wow, what a great compliment! Thanks!_) and thank you to everyone else who read this. I shall say no more, ENJOY the story and I shall be back very very soon!  
Lots of love, your humble authoress,  
_Kayla S._

p.s. I just noticed I messed up with the chapter numbers, so please excuse me if you got multiple chapter alerts but I had to export the wrongly numbered ones and re-insert them! ;)

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**Chapter 15** **– THE WAY THINGS GOT MUCH BETTER**

"Mommy! Daddy! I'm back!"

"Charlene!" Mrs.Bucket cried, recovering from the shock of their entrance.

The elevator doors elegantly slid open, and Charlene happily sprinted towards her parents, who welcomed her with open arms. She hugged the both of them, then quickly rushed over to the grandparents's bed, kissing each of them on the cheek. She approached Grandpa Joe for last, and noticed that he, more than anybody else, was staring at Willy with a starstruck expression. Smiling, the girl walked back to Willy's side.

"Mom, Dad…granparents," she announced, "I'd like you to meet Mr.Willy Wonka." Willy waved awkwardly at them.

"Mr.Wonka?" Grandpa Joe spoke up, "I…I don't think you'll remember me, but…I used to work for you, way back when you opened your first shop on Cherry Street, until you closed your factory."

Willy frowned, as he asked suspiciously, "You wouldn't happen to be one of those despicable spies, who every day tried to steal my life's work and sell it to those good for nothing candy making copycats, would you?"

"_Never_, sir!" Grandpa Joe said, slightly shaken.

Willy's expression immediately changed as he smiled once again, "Oh! Then it's absolutely delightful to see you again!" he bowed his head at him.

Grandpa Joe seemed estatic. Meanwhile, Charlene had moved over to her parents.

"You are never going to believe what we're here to tell you!"

Mr and Mrs Bucket looked curiously at them, and Charlene glanced at Willy, encouraging him to speak. The chocolatier cleared his throat and began examining the small house uncerimoniously.

"Your daughter," he said, moving towards the kitchen, "Has won the most amazing prize anybody could ever think of."

"What would that prize be?" asked Mr Bucket.

Willy looked at him, closing the closet he'd been exploring, and smiled, "Well," he responded, "You see, when I sent out the five Golden Tickets, I had a plan in mind. By letting the five finders enter my factory, I'd get the chance to test them and select the best one whom I could entrust to become my heir." He came to a halt in front of Charlene, "And that just so happens to be our beloved Charlene."

There was a moment's silence, as everybody took in Willy's last words, trying to understand what he'd just said. Nobody could believe their ears. Willy and Charlene merely shifted their gazes from one family member to the other, entertained by their stunned expressions.

"He's pulling our leg, isn't he?" Grandpa Joe dared to whisper a while later, looking up at Charlene.

She shook her head, "No, Grandpa, it's true! It's all true!"

"Never a truer word spoken in all my life," Willy confirmed, proudly nodding his head.

"But that…that means you've….we've…." Mrs Bucket stuttered.

"It means," Charlene said, stepping in front of her mother and taking her hands, "That we've just solved all our problems!"

Mrs Bucket was unable to say anything else for another couple of seconds, before a huge smile appeared on her face and she let out a shriek of joy, suddenly throwing her arms around her daughter's neck and embracing her tightly. Her enthusiasm seemed to instantly affect the rest of the family as well, and they all started cheering and clapping; the old grandparents hugging each other and Mr Bucket rushing over to hug his wife and daughter.

Willy stood aside, admiring the scene with a melanchonic look in his eyes. Something inside of him stirred, and he felt a slight pang of pain as he watched the happiness of the moment playing before him. His eyes rested upon Charlene, who was joyfully hugging her grandparents, and he noticed how lovely she looked as she laughed light-heartedly. He let out a soft sigh, but his mind quickly snapped back to the present when the girl's eyes met his. With a smile, she straightened up and walked back to him.

"Thank you," was all she could say, the commotion of the moment showing into her shiny eyes. Willy felt his heart swell at her sweetness, and placed his hand on the girl's cheek, returning her misty smile, "You are very much welcome, my dear."

"Well, it really looks like our Charlene has made us all proud!" Grandpa George exclaimed, making both of them turn their heads towards him. All the others nodded in agreement.

"Well said," confirmed Grandma Josephine, "He couldn't have made a better choice by choosing her to help him take care of his factory!"

"Oh, Mr.Wonka, by any chance, has she told you about her marvellous chocolate cake recepie?" asked Grandpa Joe.

"I love chocolate!" exclaimed Grandma Georgina.

"Oh, Grandpa, I…" the girl began, shaking her head.

Willy cut her off, sounding puzzled, yet amused, "You have your own chocolate cake recepie?"

"Well, I…yes, I do, but it's really nothing special-"

"_Nothing special?_" Grandpa Joe echoed, "Mr.Wonka, you have got to believe me, this girl is capable of baking probably the most delicious chocolate cake in the entire world! I'm ready to bet it would taste even be better than anyone of your desserts!"

Willy looked back at her, arching an eyebrow curiously, "Is that so? Well then, I guess she'll just _have_ to proove that as soon as possible, right?"

Charlene blushed.

"So what's going to happen now?" Mr Bucket asked, "I mean…is everything going to change?"

"Well," answered Willy, "Not if you don't want it to. I mean, of course now Charlene has access to the factory and she can visit whenever she wants – er, and you're all welcome as well, of course. But, as a matter of fact," he added, "I had also planned to set up a sort of training for my future heir, which means she would probably have to stay with me as much as she can, so that I can start helping her get acquainted with the factory. She doesn't have to, though, if she doesn't agree."

Charlene couldn't believe her ears, and nearly blurted out, "Of course I agree!" before hastily adding, "That is…if my parents are all right with that too."

"Darling, of course we are!" said Mr Bucket, "Right, dear?"

"Anything you wish, love," her mother agreed.

"But what about my job at Lollipops&Sugar?" she demanded.

"You can keep working there if you want, it's absolutely fine with me!" said Willy, "I mean, you can work in the morning and then come to the factory in the afternoon!"

The grandparents and parents all nodded merrily. Charlene looked at Willy once again, and shrugged, "All right then…Looks like we're all in agreement! So, when does my training start?"

"Right away, if you want!" answered Willy.

"Wonderful!" she exclaimed enthusiastically.

"All right!" he said, turning to the elevator and pressing the button to open its doors. Charlene hugged her parents once again, before hurrying to follow him. They climbed inside and turned once again towards the Buckets.

"Behave yourself now!" Mrs Bucket said, and the girl nodded.

"Don't worry, I'll bring her back before dinner!" Willy reassured them.

They waved at each other, Willy pressed the "Up&Out" button, and the elevator was raised up in the air once again. As soon as they were gone, Mr and Mrs Bucket gazed up at the sky through the hole they'd left in the roof, and Grandma Georgina merrily exclaimed, "Things are going to get much better now!"

And so it was: from that day forward, Charlene Bucket's life changed for good. In the blink of an eye, everything that had gone wrong seemed to fall back together. Mr Bucket got another job at the same factory he used to work in, and his salary increased greatly. Charlene also obtained a pay rise, because of all the publicity she'd brought to the store. The Bucket's roof got repaired and their house was quickly re-decorated: little by little, each tattered bit was renewed, restored, or otherwise repaired.  
They were soon wealthy enough to buy proper food, and everyone greatly benefit from that. As a matter of fact, in a short period of time they were also able to afford to have a new room built for Charlene, just besides her parents's room, which also got expanded by a few feet. For the first time in many years, things really seemed to be going their way.

In addition to that, every day Charlene would finish working in the early afternoon, and she would hurry off to the Chocolate Factory to meet with Willy. He would always be waiting for her at the entrance, with a new lesson all planned up and meticulously prepared in his mind. Charlene would enthusiastically listen to him as he spoke to her about the Factory, the Oompa Loompas, the candy, the sweets, the rooms, and whatever else came to his mind, captured by the passion he showed for his work.

But the moments Charlene loved the most were after he was done with the day's lesson. Most of the times, he would lead her to the Chocolate Room, where they would lie down on the grass and enjoy a sweet or two as they spoke about everything and anything. He could entertain her for hours with his stories, and as time went by and they spent more and more time together, she found that he was truly an amazing man.

It was during one of those wonderful moments, a couple of months after the start of it all, that Willy, laughing with Charlene about one of his adventures he'd just told her as they lay besides one another on the grass, upon hearing the girl say, "Mr.Wonka, your stories are so wonderful to hear!" turned around to face her and, placing one hand over hers, picked up enough courage to look into her eyes and say, "Hey, you know what?" She'd raised her head to look at him, and he'd carried on, "I think you should – er…maybe, you could just…well, you could stop calling me 'Mr.Wonka', and…and just call me Willy. If…if you want, that is." She had smiled kindly at him and had nodded, repling, "All right…Willy.", blushing slightly as she called him by his first name. He'd chuckled, feeling strange as well, but happy nonetheless.

As the days went by, Charlene realized she really loved Willy's company, just as much as he loved hers. Slowly but surely, both of them began to realize that was was between them was growing into something more.

One day in particular, the Chocolatier and the girl were walking down the main hallway to one of the many rooms in the Factory, when Willy suddenly came to a halt as they passed the Inventing Room.

"Say, Charlene," he began, "I was wondering…would you be willing to show me how you bake that famous chocolate cake of yours?"

"Oh," she answered, taken aback by the request, "Well, of course, Willy."

"Come with me," he instructed, and she followed him inside the room.

Minutes later, he stood patiently behind her, as she carefully handled the ingredients of the cake, stirring and adding and mixing them together. The Oompa Loompas took the uncooked cake when she was done, and returned it a short while later when it had transformed into a steaming hot dessert. Charlene cut a slice from the cake and served it to Willy, who took a bite. His eyes lit up as he savoured its divine taste, and he gave Charlene a thrilled glance.

"Charlene!" he exclaimed, gulping the bite down, "This is fantastic! Your grandather was right, this has got to be the most delightful cake I have ever tasted in my life!"

The girl giggled, "Oh, Willy, come on! You're exaggerating!"

"I can promise you I am absolutely not!" he replied, taking another bite and annoucing, "Charlene, I want you to turn this cake into our next creation!"

And so it was. Charlene got a consistent amount of the profits made from the factory's newest invention, which made it possible for the Buckets to finish restructuring their home. The house no longer resembled the tattered old shack it once was: it had now transformed into a lovely, much more decent two-story building, with its own lawn and white fence encircling its garden.

But just as Charlene was getting used to all these changes, something else happened that newly turned her life upside down.

One hot summer day, as she arrived at the Factory, she found that Willy seemed more enthusiastic than usual."I've got a special room to show you today," he announced cheerfully, "Come on!"

Without further warning, he took hold of Charlene's hand and sprinted off down the hallway, leading them to the Chocolate Room. She followed him, curious to see where he would lead her. They entered the now familiar green valley, and when she saw he was headed for the River, she expected the large pink boat to be waiting for them. Instead, Willy led her a bit further up from where the boat was usualy docked, and shortly later she caught sight of another boat, docked to the riverbank, coloured like a blueberry and much smaller than the pink one. In fact, it seemed big enough just for two, as it held two seats, one in front of the other.

Willy led the way to the boat and stepped inside, turning around to help her onboard like he always did when they climbed aboard a boat. She gracefully took his gloved hand and stepped in besides him.

"Go ahead and take a seat," he told her, and she did. He took his place in front of her, and then took hold of two blue oars, set on the side of the boat. "All right, now we need to get inside the tunnel. Once we're there, the force of the current is going to lead us."

He kept rowing them up the river, and soon, she saw a dark entrance appear behind Willy. The Chocolatier felt the chocolate current grow stronger, and gradually stopped rowing, until they entered the dark and he was able to stop completely.

The chocolate was now pushing them further into the tunnel, which was very dimly lit up. As they carried onward, Charlene felt slightly scared of what might happen to them, but once again Willy reassure her, "Don't worry, there aren't any falls here. It's just a set of little streams that lead to different rooms," he explained, "We had to take this smaller boat, because the other one is too big. Now, as I was telling you, the room I'm going to show you today is a very special one. It's where the Chocolate rRver's springs are! I'm sure you're going to love it, you'll see!"

Even in the darkness, Charlene could see his white smile, and couldn't help grinning as well. They travelled in near silence for a couple of seconds, until Willy announced,"All right, if my calculations are correct, we will be making a left turn in just a moment, and then we'll be there!"

Suddenly, though, they felt the boat take a sharp turn to the right, and both of them shook slightly sideways.

"What was that?" asked Charlene.

"I - I don't know," said Willy, frowning to himself and placing a hand under his chin, "That's strange. I'm sure the room was to the left, I don't…"

But his words were cut off from the sound of a wooden door creaking open. Both of them looked around, disoriented and surprised, as a twinkling sound filled the air and a purple-ish curtain in front of them was lifted. The boat silently glided into a new room, and they heard the door closing behind them.

The room they had entered was rather small, and circular. The river flooded into a round pond, and a small riverbank encircled it. There was a very peculiar atmosphere: it was dark, as though it were just after sunset, and the dim light was giving off a soft violet shade, as a slight pink fog swirled just above the surface of the river. The riverbank, Charlene noticed, was entirely covered with blue and purple flowers, that gave off a very strong and sweet scent that made her feel slightly dizzy. What was most, the very centre of the pond was occupied by a large weeping willow. Everything in the room seemed exceptionally beautiful.

"Willy," she whispered, taken aback by the wondrous sight before her eyes, "Where are we?"


	17. Chapter 16: No Time Will Be Better

**A/N: **Well, well well…what d'you know? I'm back! ) I am back, and I am here to announce that I will be leaving for vacation just tomorrow morning, so sadly I am almost certain I will not be able to update for the next month to come. But have no fear, fellow Wonka-lovers! For your humble authoress is here with a delightfully new chapter all for you to enjoy !! And something tells me you're all going to enjoy this one _in particular…especially because it was particularly hard to write, _so I must say I am quite proud of myself. Hehe. ;) Oh, I'd also like to say, this is also for those of you whom have told me in the past that they missed the Oompa Loompas singing. Well..here you go then! All right, all right, I don't want to stand in your way now, so…thank you as always, my love goes to all of you: iiceangel3.o (you are very welcome dear!), smallncrazy91, minorly-crazy (i'm flattered! Oh, and btw…-fetches candycanes- Thank you so much for these! I love them too!:)), princess moon shadow, TBooki (well I just guess you'll have to read to find out,right?;) ), dreamer 3097, Snuffles-sweetie (once again…read on and you shall see dear!:)), Nightcrawlerlover (here you go then!:D), beebsy1219, Emberlyn Silvermoon, keymasters, Evil.makes.me.giggle (why thank you for your good-luck wishing!.) And as for the rest…. ENJOY !  
Oh, one last thing…the lyrics are from Disney.  
Not mine, people. Disney's. LOL. :P  
So…To our next chapter mates!

with love from your humble authoress,  
_Kayla S._

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**Chapter 16– ****NO TIME WILL BE BETTER**

Surpisingly, the Chocolatier seemed to be just as surprised as Charlene was.

"I…I have no idea where we are, actually," he replied to her question. There were so many rooms in the factory, that he had barely enough memory to recall all of them, and just supposed this must've been one of those which he visited very rarely. He was trying as hard as he could to place it in his memory. Oddly, however, he could swear he was also beginning to hear some sort of melody playing in the background, which was making it quite difficult for him to think.

"Of course!" he managed to recall at last, "Now I remember! This must be the Valentine's Day room!"

"Beg your pardon?" asked Charlene.

The melody was steadily growing louder in Willy's ears, and he had to fight to keep his attention on her. What was going _on_? What was this music all about? And why did it look like Charlene couldn't hear it?

"Oh, it's nothing really," he answered, fighting to block the music out of his mind, "It's just a little room I built to make my very own special Valentine's Day sweets. That's why there's this – er - _calm _atmosphere. It helps the Cupidiels and Valentiles grow."

"The…what?" Charlene blinked, confused.

"Cupidiels and Valentiles," Willy repeated in his tipical matter-of-factly tone, surprised she didn't know what they were, "They're special flowers that…ah, well, that are very sensitive to light and heat, first of all. They're exotic, very hard to find, but very useful. That's why I brought them inside this room: they give off a special scent that –" he broke off and lowered his face slightly, blushing as the rest of the sentence echoed inside his head, "-_that is said to have an aphrodisiac effect on the sweets and the air around them."_

"Willy? What did you say?"

"_Oh, great,"_ he thought to himself, _"Just what we needed! Now I-"_

"Willy?" Charlene repeated, making him look up, "What does their scent do?" noticing his flustered expression, she asked, "Is everything all right?"

Again, Willy was barely able to hear her over the music that now seemed to fill his ears completely. Still, he nodded vigorously at her, trying to look confident, although he suddenly felt an extremely awkward feeling pervading him. Charlene, on her behalf, was admiring the room, so neither of them spoke. Willy was thankful for that, for now the only thing he could hear was the melody, suddenly accompanied by a deep voice that sang:

_**There you see her, sitting there across the way**_

_**She don't got a lot to say, but there's something about her**_

Willy recognized the voice as one of his Oompa Loompas, echoing from somewhere unknown. He quickly shot a glance around the room, but saw nobody. Slowly, he lifted his head and looked at Charlene, who caught his gaze and gave him a slight grin, which he shakily returned.

_**And you don't know why**_

_**But you're dieing to try**_

_**You wanna…kiss the girl**_

When he heard those words, Willy nearly jumped, and his heart started to beat faster as he shifted his gaze away from Charlene.

He wanted to _what?_

The voice carried on:

_**Yes, you want her**_

_**Look at her, you know you do**_

He shot Charlene a quick glance.

_Did_ he want to?

Well…

He _did _think she was very, very pretty…

_**It's possible she wants you too**_

_**There is one way to ask her…**_

She _wanted him too?_

What in the name of Chocolate where they saying? He suddenly wished Charlene would speak, but the girl seemed lost in her own world.

_**She don't say a word**_

_**And she won't say a word**_

_**Until you…kiss the girl**_

Willy noticed that the dark ceiling was slowly lighting up with what seemed like tiny little stars.

"_That's strange,_" he thought to himself, "_I don't recall putting lights up there…_"

Meanwhile, their boat slowly headed towards the center of the pond.

_**Sha-la-la-la-la-la**_

_**My, oh my**_

_**Looks like the boy's too shy**_

_**Ain't gonna kiss the girl**_

Again, Willy felt himself blush, and lowered his hat slightly over his eyes.

_**Sha-la-la-la-la-la**_

_**Ain't that sad?**_

_**It's just a shame, too bad…**_

_**You're gonna miss the girl…**_

With a sudden unpleasant jolt in his stomach, he realized that this could be, in fact, the one singular moment he'd get to test his feelings for her…and her feelings for him. The voice kept urging him on:

_**Go on and kiss the girl…**_

As he looked at her yet again - he didn't know if it was the flowers' effect or not - all of a sudden, she looked even _prettier_ to him…He noticed that the boat was now gliding through the branches of the weeping willow, and moments later, they found themselves inside.

_**Now's your moment**_

_**Floating in a blue lagoon**_

_**Boy you better do it soon**_

_**No time will be better…**_

Magically, the branches of the willow seemed to lit up with tiny sparkling lights, and the pink fog swirled gently around the boat…

And suddenly, as he stared at Charlene, the girl noticed his gaze for the first time, and as their eyes locked together in silence, he felt his heart skip a beat…

_**It don't take a word**_

_**Not a single word**_

_**Go on and**_

_**Kiss the girl**_

Strangely, Willy began to realize the Oompa Loompa's words didn't sound so wrong after all…trying hard to keep from shaking, he lifted his hand tentatively and, ever so slowly, placed it on top of Charlene's, dreading she would retrieve hers…

She didn't.

_**Sha-la-la-la-la-la**_

_**Don't be scared**_

_**You better be prepared**_

_**Go on and kiss the girl**_

It all seemed too crazy and strange to be true, and Willy found himself wondering if he was dreaming. He felt as though he wasn't controlling his body anymore, it was as though something had taken over him, something stronger than his racing heartbeat or his shaky fear of what was happening...

_**Sha-la-la-la-la-la**_

_**Don't stop now**_

_**Don't try to hide it how**_

_**You wanna kiss the girl**_

_**Go on and kiss the girl**_

He had never been in such a situation before. He felt really weird, but at the same time, he felt a warm, pleasant tingle starting to spread inside his body, pervading him…

_**Sha-la-la-la-la-la**_

_**Float along and listen to the song**_

_**The song says**_

_**Kiss the girl**_

He wondered if Charlene was feeling the same way, but assumed so, seeing her dazed expression…

_**Sha-la-la-la-la-la**_

_**Music plays**_

_**Do what the music says**_

_**You gotta kiss the girl**_

That something that had taken over him now made him courageously lift his other gloved hand and bring it gently to Charlene's cheek…

_**Kiss the girl**_

The girl responded by lifting her own hand to touch his, smiling sweetly, not once breaking eye contact. He smiled back, and all of a sudden he felt as though his fear had left him, and a new wave of confidence was taking its place.

And right then, he decided to just go ahead and do it…

_**Kiss the girl**_

He felt himself leaning in closer and closer towards Charlene, a small part of him still fearing she would back away…but seeing her grin and lean towards him too was all he needed to go the rest of the way…

_**Kiss the girl**_

And so, ever so gently, before he knew what was happening, he felt his lips touch hers, and the contact made him tingle with joy, as an unknown happiness suddenly sparked to life inside him and he savoured what felt like the sweetest taste ever, sweeter than any chocolate he had ever tasted…

_**Kiss the girl**_

As he felt the girl's arms circle his neck and moved in closer to embrace her waist, Willy forgot about everything else, and completely gave in to the tenderness of the kiss.

And, truth be told, the Chocolatier had never felt happier in his entire life.

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**A/N: **Teehee. I know, I know…_**finally!**_, right? :D As a matter of fact, I wanted to use the song's title as the chapter's title, but I didn't want to give the ending away so soon. Well I hope you enjoyed it still! :D thank you all for reading! to our next chapter.

Lots of love from your authoress,  
Kayla S.


	18. Epilogue: Goonight,Starshine

**A/N: **I'M BACK ! Yes, ladies and gentlemen, your dear Kayla has finally returned! Now, just in case you were wondering, the previous chapter WASN'T the last one,….this one, however, is! Yes indeed, I am very very proud to present you all…the Epilogue to my story! I feel so proud of myself for finally finishing this story, it's been my second-finished story ever, and it's been my all-time favourite fic so far, I've had SO MUCH fun writing it! Of course, I _never_ would've gotten so far if it hadn't been for your increbile support and wonderful reviews, so THANK YOU ALL from the bottom of my heart!

On a slightly bitter note, I have to say I've been recently very disappointed in finding that someone on this site has stolen my idea and has tried to pass it on as their own. I'm not going to say names,but let's just say that reading this story I have found way too many coicindenting points to not think that the plot was stolen from me. It's hurt me, mostly because of all the effort I know – and I hope you guys all know as well – I've put in this fic, but unfortunately there isn't much to do about it if not try to ignore it and hope that you will all still keep reading my story. On a much lighter note…

I hope you all enjoy this chapter!! I know it's the last one,and I know you might be sad about it, but…FEAR NOT!, my beloved readers! For I am glad to announce that a SEQUEL is on it's right way! Oh yes, Willy and Charlene's adventures have just begun! You didn't honestly think I'd leave these two so easily now, did you? ;)

No,no,no!! After following the movie's storyline, I have to admit I am very excited to see which new adventures our two heroes will be facing soon. And I hope you all are as well! Now, a quick reply to your reviews, as always: many,many thank yous to…

**Amin Caele Nir' Eredfuumelar**; **Thornwitch**- thank you for pointing that out, I understand what you mean. I'll be sure to keep your comment in mind, and if you'll keep on reading this chapter and the future sequel, you'll hopefully see a gradual change in Charlene's attitude as her relationship with Willy gets more intimate. Cheers!;**KeLpIeenoch**; **Superdani**; **Ge the Turk**- hehe, don't worry, I understand what you mean! I actually decided to take the Oompa Loompa songs out because song chapters aren't my favourites either, but as you can see I'll add one in now and then if it helps the story, and I'm happy you think it did in this case!; **XxSupernatural.lovexX**; **keymasters**- hehe, don't you love fluff? I do! XD; **Tbooki**; **Lady Rikkunen**; **Snuffles-sweetie** – uhm, well, I figured it would be nicer if Willy was the only one to heear the singing! I guess it's the Factory's magic…hehe!; **dreamer 3097**; **minorly-crazy**- haha, funny coincidence, I wanted to be a mermaid when I was little too!I think you're not the only one who risked drowning trying to become one…trust me! XD; **Emberlyn Silvermoon**- I hope you're happy to see there's much more to come dearie!); **princess moon shadow**; **MusicalLife17**; **Tsuki of the Roselight**; and **iiceangel3.o** !

And now, ladies and gentlemen, I give you…The Epilogue!  
With love from yours truly,  
Kayla Sparrow

p.s. here's what I'd like the Buckets's house to look like after having it restored BTW...  
/ProdImages/father of the bride.JPG  
what d'ya think? )  
cheers!!

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**Chapter 17– EPILOGUE : "GOONIGHT, STARSHINE"**

Mrs.Bucket shot the kitchen clock a quick glance, frowning slightly as she stirred the pot boiling on the stove: it was half past eight, and there was still no sign of Charlene, nor Willy, for that matter. Where had those two _gone?_ She shook her head: if they didn't hurry, they'd miss out on dinner!

In that moment, Mr.Bucket entered the kitchen, walking over to his wife and placing a peck on her cheek. "Everything all right, dear?" he asked.

"It would be, if those two would show up in time for dinner for once!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, you know them," he replied, shrugging lightly, "They probably got caught up on some project and-"

"There they are!" exclaimed Mrs.Bucket, looking out the window.

Indeed, when Mr.Bucket looked, he saw the glass elevator parking itself in the front lawn. Willy helped Charlene out, and the two of them made their way towards the house, laughing and smiling cheerfully at each other. He smiled as well and went to open the door.

"Hi Daddy!" his daughter greeted him when he opened the door, hugging him and giving him a light kiss.

"Good evening, Mr.Bucket," Willy echoed her, entering the house and taking his top hat and coat off.

"Good evening to you too," Mr.Bucket replied, closing the door behind them, before turning to Charlene and saying, "Your mother's been worried for you. What took you so long?" he moved his gaze between them, "Something new coming up?"

Charlene felt her cheeks flush, as she thought about the _real_ reason why they'd been so late. Truth be told, it had already been late afternoon when she'd gone to the factory that day, and after what had happened in the Valentine's Day room, she and Willy had spent most of the afternoon lazily lying on the grass in the Chocolate Room, enjoying each other's company and the change in their relationship.

Willy, on his behalf, managed to stiff the giggle that threatened to escape his throat when he saw Charlene blush, and with a slight smile he answered Mr.Bucket, "Oh, yes, we're…we're starting to sort things out, I guess."

He and Charlene exchanged a quick glance, but Mr.Bucket fortunately didn't seem to notice, and simply said, "Oh. Well then, I believe we should move to the dining room? Charlene, will you be a good girl and go see if your mother needs any help in the kitchen, please?"

"Sure, Daddy," she replied, managing to wink secretly at Willy before heading to the kitchen.

"Hi Mom!" she said cheerfully as she entered the room, hugging her too.

"Well it's about time!" Mrs.Bucket exclaimed, nodding towards the clock, "What in Heaven's name have you been up to?"

"Oh, I…we got….caught up in our lesson, I guess," she replied casually, turning to one of the cupboards to fetch the dishes, "I'll set up the table."

"Sure," her mother replied, watching her daughter's strange response and shrugging it off.

A while later the entire family was seating around the table busily passing the dishes along and happily enjoying their dinner. It seemed just like another simple evening for the Buckets. The same couldn't be said, however, of Willy and Charlene. Throughout the whole dinner, the two of them, who were sitting besides one another, kept trying to avoid each other's gaze, for fear of bursting out giggling like little children. Neither of them had felt so giddy in a long time, and it was probably due to the fact that they had decided to not say anything to the family for now.

As for Mr. and Mrs. Bucket and the grandparents, they imagined that the their giddiness probably had to do with whichever new project they were up to, and nobody suspected there be another reason. That was why, halfway through the dinner, Mr.Bucket decided to ask them more about it.

"So tell me, Willy," he asked, "What's this new project of yours about?"

Everybody's head turned towards Willy and Charlene, eagerly waiting for an answer. There was a moment's silence, as Willy and Charlene exchanged a quick, worried look. Willy opened his mouth to speak, not sure of what to say, but fortunately Charlene promptly came up with an answer for him.

"Valentine's Day gifts," she said.

The family's head turned to her, including Willy's, who quickly caught up with what she had in mind and, barely suppressing a satisfied grin, echoed, "Yeah…that."

"Why is that so?" asked Mrs.Bucket.

"Well," answered Charlene, "It'll be Valentine's Day in just a few months, and Willy and I were thinking about releasing a new product line specifically for the occasion." She nodded at her own explanation, taking a bite of her meal, "It'll be very special!"

The Buckets nodded in understandment, commenting on the originality of the idea. Willy nodded in agreement as well, using all his self-control to supress a new series of giggles. He did, however, manage to give Charlene a look of understandment as they returned to their food, Mr.Bucket now speaking about something that had happened to him at work that day.

The rest of the dinner went by smoothly, and they ended up echanging stories and laughing at each other's jokes and adventures. Some time later, Mrs.Bucket got up and asked Charlene to help her with the dishes. The girl promptly got to her feet and helped her mother clean up, while the rest of the family moved to the living room.

As they were cleaning up the kitchen, Mrs.Bucket eyed her daughter, who was setting the washed silverware in its place with a dreamy look in her eyes, and with a bittersweet smile, she understood that something more than a new project had happened to make her daughter act that way.

She imagined what it might be, but decided to act as though she didn't know anything until Charlene decided to tell her about it. She couldn't help herself, however, from giving her daughter a light caress on the cheek when she passed in front of her. Charlene eyed her curiously for a moment, but quickly hid her surprise and simply smiled at her mother, thinking it was just a sign of affection. She then turned back to the dining room to go and fetch the last dishes, and her mother followed her with a happy smile spreading on her face.

Quite quickly, some time after the two women had finished cleaning up and had joined the others in the living room, the time came for Willy to go back to the Factory for the night. Getting up from the comfy sofa, the Chocolatier bid the Buckets goodnight. They all did the same in return, and he started to head for the door, glancing once at Charlene. The girl caught his message immediately and promplty excused herself as she got to her feet, saying she'd accompany him to the door.

The two of them went through the living room and into the entrace, by themselves for the first time in the entire evening. Charlene opened the door for Willy, and the two of them stepped outside under the porch. Willy turned to face her, as she leaned casually on the doorframe and gave him a sweet smile.

"So," she said, trying to hide her rising laughter.

He smiled back at her, echoing, "So…"

"Tonight was….nice," she said, nodding her head.

"It sure was," he answered mockingly. Both of them burst out laughing, finally releasing the giddiness they had been holding down throughout the entire dinner.

When their laughs died away, Charlene glanced at him once again.

"Well then," she said, "I guess I'll be seeing you tomorrow?"

"I guess so," he answered.

"Same time as always?"

"Why not?"

She nodded, "All right. Until tomorrow then," she lightly bowed her head to him, "Goodnight, Mr.Wonka…"

"Goodnight to you, Miss Bucket," he answered jokingly, bowing his own head to her.

There was a moment's pause, where Willy looked at her, slighly unsure of what to do, and Charlene stood still, not really feeling like closing the door just yet.

To lighten the silence, a few seconds later she mockingly asked, "Well? Aren't you going?"

"Oh, right," he said, starting to turn around and walking down the front steps, to Charlene's slight disappointment.

However, the girl was just about to turn and go back into the house when she head him say, "Actually," and saw him stop in his tracks and spin around once more, climbing back up to her,"Right after I do this."

Charlene only had a split second to wonder what he was up to, before he swiftly scooped her into his arms and kissed her sweetly, enveloping her in his embrace. The girl, pleasantly surprised by his action, gently held onto him and returned the kiss.

When they broke apart, Willy grinned at her and whispered gently, "_Goodnight, Starshine._"

Charlene couldn't help but giggle, answering him with another kiss. The two of them then parted, and Willy went on his way, still turning around to eye Charlene until he was inside the Glass Elevator and soared lightly into the air. Even as he did so, their eyes remained on each other, and he saw her send him a kiss before the clouds covered her form and she disappeared from sight. And as he smoothly zoomed towards the Factory, the Chocolatier let out a content sight.

On her behalf, Charlene remained on the lawn for a few more momets, her eyes stil fixed on the sky, and then, she started giggling to herself before walking back inside her house.

And althought they were now separated from each other and didn't know it, both of them were thinking the exact same thing:

_Life had never been sweeter._

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**A/N:** And there you have it, folks! Our wonderful (and first) Happy Ending! I just _had_ to use that last line from the movie, it was just too perfect! Now, before I leave you, I would like to ask you all a big favour: please let me know what you liked in the story? Which was your favourite part (or parts,for that matter)? What did you like less? What do you think I should change or keep in our sequel? I would really like to know, so that I can start organizing my ideas for the upcoming sequel! I'd love to continue writing this story knowing what you guys like and what you think I should improove/change.

Once again, thank you very very very much for taking your time to read this, I hope you enjoyed doing so just as much as I did writing it! And once again, fear not, I promise the sequel will be posted real soon! Just keep an eye out for it, and I'll be sure to post a link to it on here to let you all know when it's ready! I'll be waiting for your suggestions then!

Once again, all my love to you, and … to our next meeting! )

Sincerely yours,  
your authoress,  
_Kayla Sparrow_


	19. IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT! :D

**A/N: **Ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to announce that the FIRST CHAPTER of this story's sequel is now up! Just click on my profile and check it out! I look forward to receiving your lovely reviews!

Get ready for a whole new beginning with our favourite couple!

All the best,

With love,

-Kayla


	20. NEW AUTHOR'S NOTE: PLEASE READ!

**MAY 23RD, 2010**

**IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ALL MY READERS**

Hello everybody!

I am so very happy to be back to writing more about my favorite Chocolatier in the whole world! However, I am here to leave you all an important message -

**To those of you who have an alert set for this story:** I must warn you that I am in the process of creating a new, updated version of it, as well as working on its sequel.

The editings I will make shall be minimal, but seeing as I preferred not to take the entire thing down from here, I must warn you that I **will** need to take down the chapters one by one and replace them with their updated version sometime soon. Now, since I do not know if FF will send out a load of random notifications with 'NEW CHAPTER!' written all over them each time I do this, I apologize in advance if you receive these messages for nothing. But please do take the time to check in after a while, since once the updating process _will_ be over you will find another note by yours truly to announce that the new version has been successfully set up.

On a closely related topic: since I _will_ be making changes and, hopefully, improvements to the story, **if you have noticed ****any**** plot holes, grammatical errors or mistakes in general **which might have escaped me,** PLEASE let me know with a PM! **I will greatly appreciate your help.

All in all, I hope you'll keep enjoying the fanfic! Personally, each time I deal with it I realize that it holds a very special place in my heart. :)

I am looking forward to presenting the 2010 version to you as soon as possible!

Thank you for your attention!

As always,

_Love and chocolate bars to all,_

_xoxo,_

_-Kayla_


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